Harry's Kids and the Dementra's Kiss
by Tustin2121
Summary: After Deathly Hallows! After Harry sends his kids off to Hogwarts again, he never would have thought that they would ever be in danger. But when James comes home a Muggle, things take a bad turn... and help can only be found in a Muggle inventor. Plz R&R!
1. The Mischievous Muggle

_I suppose since everyone else is saying it... All characters in this story (besides the ones made by me, like Draco's wife and Mr. Donavin) are owned by JK Rowling. I do not claim to own them (though I do claim to own the tiny piece of Hogwarts that I changed... :) ) _

_From the Author: This is a story that takes place after Deathly Hallows. This chapter actually occurs before DH's Epilogue, but right before, so Harry is 36 and not a teen. I just hope that I'll go somewhere with this story... Enjoy!  
_

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Chapter 1 – The Mischievous Muggle 

Harry coughed as he stepped through the front door, waving his hand aloft in an attempt to clear the smoke.

"Mr. Donavin?" Harry called, coughing a little, "Mr. Donavin, are you alright?"

Harry stepped over the threshold, which was made considerably higher since a toppled grandfather clock added to its height. He picked his way through the smoking rubble that littered the hallway and found the smoke emanating from the basement door. He opened it and a blast of thick black smoke caught his face. Harry bent over and coughed. He pulled out his wand and waved it slightly; the smoke thinned considerably. Storing his wand back in his jeans pocket, he worked his way down the wooden steps into the basement.

The basement, which was usually a mess from the different times he visited, was now blasted clean; only smoke and blast marks littered the place. In the center of the concrete floor, an older man laid, sprawled on the floor, black from the blast. If the situation wasn't so serious, it would have been comical from the way the man's front was black and the little amount of hair he had was blasted straight back.

"Mr. Donavin!" Harry shouted, coming down the stairs. He kneeled beside the man and put his ear to his chest. Still beating…

Harry sat up and looked down at the man on the ground. He shook his head in disbelief and glanced over at the wall where the blast came from. And he stared.

Against the wall was a strange mechanical contraption, a machine of sorts. The machine was blasted apart in places, sparking in others. What caught Harry's attention though was the thing suspended within the machine.

A blue jumper (which is all Harry could describe it as) that was entirely made of metal plates hung perfectly untouched in the center of the blackened machine. It hung there with its gleaming arms outstretched to the side and its helmet with tinted glass perfectly unscathed.

Sirens. Harry was brought back to his senses as he heard the squeal of fire trucks. _What was I thinking? Surly the fire department would see the black smoke rising thick from the house. After all, I heard the blast loud and clear from next door and Ginny looked out at the house and screamed to me to do something. Why would no one else see it? I'm not the only one around..._

He looked down at the man lying prostrate on the floor in front of him. Surely the ambulances were coming as well? But Harry felt compelled.

He pulled his wand from his jeans again and waved it in front of the man, muttering, "_Rennervate_".

The man jumped alive, his eyes shooting open, and yelled, "EUREKA!!!!"

Harry, startled, jumped back and landed on his behind. The old man shuffled to his feet so quickly that Harry thought he might have did the wrong spell.

"It has worked!!" The man shouted, "My invention is nearly complete!!"

"Uh, excuse me…" Harry asked, feeling oddly like he was in class again. "What invention?"

The man spun around and saw Harry on the floor. "Mr. Potter!" the man shouted, happily surprised to see him there, "I have made a most interesting discovery!"

"What?" Harry said, unable to resist, "that you can nearly kill yourself? Or that you can blow your house up?"

The man stood, smile wiped suddenly from his face, as he realized the results of his discovery. Then, he too heard the sirens, so close they could have been parked in his front yard.

"Quick! My boy, I must ask something of you!"

"What?" Harry asked, annoyed, as he pulled himself up off the floor, "Another spell, I suppose?"

"Just a tiny one!" Mr. Donavin said, pinching his fingers together to illustrate.

"You realize that this is why the bloody Ministry of Magic instituted the Statute of Secrecy! I might get tossed into court for this!"

"My boy, you haven't yet, have you?"

"Probably because you live so bloody close to me…" Harry said, eyeing the man.

The fire men could be heard shouting from outside.

"Please…" Mr. Donavin pleaded, "If you could just hide my contraption from the men upstairs?"

Harry rolled his eyes, "As long as you remember that you won't be able to see it either…"

"Yes, I understand!"

Harry sighed again and turned his wand on the machine that held the strange suit. Making a single sweeping motion, he cast an Invisibility charm on it and the machine disappeared.

"Thank you, my boy. I will repay you someday for your generosity..."

"You keep telling me that, Mr. Donavin, and that day has yet to come…"

"Hey!" a fire man called down the stairs, "Is anyone injured down there?"

Harry quickly stowed his wand away as Mr. Donavin called up, "We're fine!"

"Well get outside then! This house is on fire!"

Mr. Donavin, shocked now at the news, hurried up the stairs as Harry followed behind, staring at the spot where the strange machine was once visible.


	2. Off to Hogwarts

_From the Author: I'm sure you all recognize the beginning of this chapter. If you don't, STOP READING AND GO AND FINISH DEATHLY HALLOWS RIGHT NOW!!! Thank you... If you don't get all the character references, please re-read the epilogue of DH._

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Chapter 2 – Off to Hogwarts 

Doors were slamming all along the scarlet train, and the blurred outlines of parents were swarming forward for final kisses, last-minute reminders. Albus jumped into the carriage and Ginny closed the door behind him. Students were hanging from the windows nearest them. A great number of faces, both on the train and off, seemed to be turned toward Harry.

"Why are the all _staring_?" demanded Albus as he and Rose craned around to look at the other students.

"Don't let it worry you," said Ron. "It's me. I'm extremely famous."

Albus, Rose, Hugo, and Lily laughed. The train began to move, and Harry walked alongside it, watching his son's thin face, already ablaze with excitement. Harry kept smiling and waving, even though it was like a little bereavement, watching his son glide away from him…

The last trace of steam evaporated in the autumn air. The train rounded the corner. Harry's hand was still raised in farewell.

"He'll be all right," murmured Ginny, approaching Harry.

Harry looked at her, his hand lowering absentmindedly to his scar.

"I know he will…"

Ginny leaned in for a kiss, which Harry gave.

"Alright, that's enough…"

"Ron!" Hermione said, smacking her husband across his chest, "They're married. They're allowed."

Harry turned his face to Ron, snaking his hand through Ginny's hair to hold her close. "Come now, Ron, you can't tell me you haven't gotten over it yet? You were my best man! You didn't stop me then, did you?"

"No," Ron said, looking at his sister, "But I had to turn my face away…"

Hermione reacted in disbelief as Harry and Ginny shared a laugh. As they laughed, Draco approached.

"May I butt in?" He asked, reserved in an unusual way.

"Why don't you just butt in like all the other times?" Ron said, glaring at Draco.

Harry turned. "Malfoy," he said, retreating his hand from Ginny's hair to shake hands firmly with him. "Haven't seen you in a while…"

"Same to you, Potter." Draco said it, not with malice like in all of Harry's school years, but with respect, as if he finally decided that Harry was an equal.

Harry's eyes turned up to look at Draco's forehead, "Having some hair trouble, are we?"

Draco put an hand to his head, trying to hide his receding hairline. "I guess I finally know what it feels like to be you, constantly covering your head…"

They laughed, like the old friends that they were. At that moment, Lily and Hugo ran over and hid behind their mothers, Ginny and Hermione. Teddy ran over now, chasing them. He stopped as he approached the circle of parents.

"Where's Victorie then?" Harry asked, knowing the answer.

"Off on the train…" Ted said, seeming disappointed as he said it, "Why couldn't she be in my year? Why did she have to be two years younger?"

"Hey, they tried! And tried and tried…" Ron said, earning himself another slap.

"Ted," Hermione said, turning, "I'm sure Bill and Fleur would be glad to permit you to marry Victorie, but I think they want her out of school first…"

Ted shuffled his feet a little, "Yeah, I know…"

Ginny felt a tug at her skirt and looked to see Lily at it.

"Can we go home now?" She said, "It's so depressing here without the train…"

Ginny laughed. "Well, how about everyone come over for lunch then? I'll make something grand! Draco, you and your wife are invited too."

"Oh, how very generous of you, thank you," Rosanne Malfoy said, leaning on her husband's arm. "Draco, we need to go back and grab the cauldron tart before we head over."

"Oh, yes…" Draco said, a dreamy look in his eyes, "The culdron tart. We will be over soon enough. Where do you live again?" he asked Harry.

"Godric's Hollow," Harry replied, "Forth house on Potter Street. It feels odd, having a road named after you…"

They laughed again. Then Harry's smile disappeared.

"I'm not too sure we should have guests over, though… The neighbor's house blew up today…"

"Blew up?" A rush of talk went around.

"So that's what that sound was," Ron said, "That was from your direction, wasn't it?!"

"No one was hurt, were they?" Hermione asked.

"No, surprisingly," Harry replied, "It was that strange Muggle inventor that sadly took up residence next to me."

"Bloody Muggles…" Draco muttered, "Always trying to make some rubbish replacement of magic…"

"Mr. Donavin?" Hermione asked unexpectedly.

"You know him?" Ginny replied.

"Yes," Ron said darkly, "he always comes around our fields and asks to see a little magic. He gets really annoying sometimes, the bloody git. I always pull Rose and Hugo inside whenever he comes around – can't trust him…" At this, Ron pulled Hugo's head towards his stomach, "He's mental, he is."

"Yes, well," Harry said, "he's invented some jumper suit contraption now that he wanted me to hide for him when the firemen came to look at the place."

"Let me over," Draco said, pulling up his left sleeve, "I'll get rid of him the old fashioned way…" All that remained of the Dark Mark now was a faint outline; it had simply vanished, lifting itself off of every Death Eater, when Harry's mortal enemy crumpled to the ground some nineteen years ago.

"Draco…" Roseanne said, giving her husband an evil eye.

Draco let down the sleeve and smiled at his wife, "I'm only joking…"

"So," Ginny said, "Who's coming?"

They walked towards the barrier now, heading to their cars. Harry was held up by Ted.

"Harry," he said to his godfather, "could I ride along?"

"Not up to Appariting?" Harry replied, "Don't want to end up there before us?"

"No… just… a little lonely…"

Harry understood. He was just like him… no father, no mother, just a godfather now, especially after his grandmother died shortly after he turned seventeen.

"There's room…" Harry said, smiling.

Ted smiled back and they walked towards the barrier.

"Just…" Harry said, his arm around his godson's shoulder, "No transforming while I'm driving – of any sort. It distracts me…"


	3. The Sorting

_From the Author: The next couple chapters seem slow, but it gets out nessasary information about the world (well, nessasary in my eyes at least). Oh, and just to note: I am never good at directly describing a character and then following up that description with action. Hence, the scene with the sorting hat is by far the hardest for me to put together... __Chapter five is where the action starts, so plow ahead!_

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Chapter 3 – The Sorting 

"Potter, Albus"

The man's voice echoed through the Great Hall, causing heads to turn to the line of nervous first years. Albus shook as he extracted himself out of the line of first years and made his way up to the four-legged stool where the tattered and burned hat sat, waiting for its next wearer.

Albus got on top of the stool and the professor dropped the hat onto his head, where it fell over his eyes, pulling him into darkness.

"ahh… yes…" a strange voice whispered in his ear, "So, Potter had more than one son, did he? You Potters are always tough to place…"

Albus hugged himself, scared of what the hat might say about him.

"Yes… I see a great longing to be recognized… selflessness, yes… and a little intuition… oh yes and that Potter family ambition… Now where could I put you…?"

_Oh please, don't put me in Slytherin…_

"No Slytherin?" the hat whispered, "Why, lots of great wizards have come from Slytherin… But you still refuse do you?"

_Please, put me in Gryffindor… like my dad…_

"Oh… I see…" That hat said in an amused tone, "Well in that case… GRYFFINDOR!!!"

The Gryffindor table burst into raucous applause at their new member. Albus pulled the hat off and stumbled to the table. He sat down next to his brother, who patted him on the back and immediately began to tease him on how long it took.

"The hat put me right in Gryffindor!" James boasted.

"No he didn't!" Albus retaliated, "It said us Potters were always hard to place!"

"Yeah, James," James's friend, Kevin, said, "It took you quite a while…"

"Shut up!" James said as the table became silent again.

A few more names were called by the deputy headmaster, such as "Lotus, Sharon", "Creevey, Dillan", and "Thomas, Godric", before a familiar name was called.

"Weasley, Rossanna"

As Albus watched Rose step gingerly up to the stool, he heard someone mention how the names were dreadfully out of order.

"I hope she's in Gryffindor…" Albus said, more to himself than anyone else.

The sorting hat was placed on her head and she sat there for a good minute before the hat yelled, "RAVENCLAW!!"

"WHAT?!" Both James and Albus exclaimed as the hat was removed from Rose's head and, glancing solemnly at Albus, she made her way over to the cheering Ravenclaw table.

* * *

After the feast had finished, the houses were lead from the Great Hall and out through the Entrance Hall. 

"Ahead is the Atrium," one of the prefects called to his group, "This room replaced the Grand Staircase shortly after Voldemort fell, as the stairs and walls of the Grand Staircase could not be repaired…"

The first-years walked into the Atrium, which was a huge open space. It was seven stories tall, the ground floor being a wide open floor while the upper floors were all wrap around balconies of differing sizes. Off to the right side was a seven story tall clock, which ticked quietly. Opposite the Entrance Hall archway was a large marble staircase that extended in one direction up to all seven floors. Several floating stairways and walkways littered the air of the Atrium, moving of their own accord around three large chandeliers which hung from the stain glass ceiling. Etched in the glass were many figures, all fighting with each other. Some of the figures were hooded, most others were not. Some of the figures were dying or being blasted by stylized spells. They all formed a circle, however, and in the center of the circle stood two figures: one with a distorted snake-like face in a black cloak, the other with black messy hair, green eyes, Muggle attire, and a thin lightning bolt scar on his forehead. Their wands were throwing golden flames at one another, connecting them.

The first-years were lead across the marble floor, which was splashed with colored moonlight, and up the marble stairs to their houses. On the staircase, Albus and Rose met again. They walked side by side as they climbed the grand stairs of the Atrium.

"Oh, Albus…" Rose said to her companion, who kept his tear streaked face concentrating on the white steps in front of him. "I'm so sorry…"

Albus continued up the stairs, never looking her way.

"I couldn't help it, Albus, I didn't have a choice!"

"Yes you did," Albus said, turning to look solemnly at Rose, "yes… you did…"

Rose stopped and watched as Albus turned away and continued to mount the stairs. Their groups, reaching the seventh floor, parted ways, moving towards their respective common rooms, Gryffindor on the left behind the fat lady's portrait, Ravenclaw on the right, behind the door with an inquisitive knocker.


	4. His First Letter

Chapter 4 – His First Letter

"Get back here!" Lily squealed as she ran out of the sitting room. Harry was jerked awake from his slight snooze. He glanced about his sitting room, expecting to see Lily playing with someone, but found no one. The door to the kitchen swung open then and Ron entered the room.

"Harry!" He said as he went up and clasped hands with Harry, "What were you doing? Snoozing?"

Harry stretched and yawned, "It's tough, getting old…"

Ron waved off the remark, "You're not old! Dumbledore was much older than you!"

"Yeah…" Harry said as his thoughts drifted back to the kind old face of his former headmaster.

The kitchen door burst open suddenly and a red-haired fox bounded out of the kitchen, followed closely by a red-haired girl.

"Come back here!" Lily laughed as she chased the fox around the coffee table.

The fox bounded over to Harry and jumped up on his lap. Harry gasped, the breath knocked out of him, as the fox turned on Harry's lap and glowered at Lily, who had stopped at Harry's feet.

"That's no fair!" Lily cried, "You can't take refuge on Daddy's lap!"

The fox sat down on Harry's lap and panted at Lily, apparently pleased.

Harry looked at Ron's amused face before turning to the fox. "Ted…"

The fox immediately turned to look at Harry, its happy smirk disappearing.

"Don't you think you're a little old for this?"

The fox shook its head, panting happily again.

Harry glared at it with a half-amused smile before saying, "Get down!"

The fox lowered it head, sadly, as its red fir immediately began to change shades until it was a gray-red. It leaped off Harry's lap and then began to transform.

"Aww, Harry…" Ted Lupin said as he stood up where the fox had landed, "I was only having a little fun…"

"I know," Harry said over his glasses, examining Ted's gray-red hair, "but your getting a little heavy for me, jumping up on me like you were still in school or something…"

Ted glanced down at Lily, who was snickering. She leaned over and touched him on the leg. "Tag," She said, "You're it…"

Ted glanced back at his godfather with a look of "this is your fault" before sitting down in a chair. At that moment, Ginny and Hermione came in with the tea. Hugo was tagging along behind his mother.

"Please, Please, Please, Please," He pestered, "Please, Please, Please, Ple—"

"Say it one more time and I'll curse your lips shut!" Hermione threatened, pulling her wand out.

Hugo immediately went silent. He spotted his father and ran over to him, jumped up on his lap and said, "Please?"

Hermione sighed as Ron said, "Please what?"

"I wanna play some Quidditch!"

"Just wait a moment, Hugo, the post should be here any moment and then we can." Ron said, looking at Hermione's exasperated face.

"Okay…" Hugo said, looking down.

And at that very moment, a tap was heard on the window. Every one looked to see a solo barn owl tapping at the window with a note tied to his leg. Ginny went over and let the owl in and it swooped over to Harry.

"Where's our owl?" Ron asked, concerned, "Rose is supposed to send us a letter as well!"

"Maybe she didn't get the chance to yet," Hermione said, moving over to sit in Ron's lap next to Hugo.

Harry had the letter already open, Ginny sitting on the armrest of his chair to look as well.

"_Dear mum and dad,_

"_Hogwarts is amazing! I got to go to all sorts of classes on the first day. There was Transfiguration, Charms with the dwarf teacher, and Herbology with Professor Longbottom (I gave him the love that you sent since James refused to). _

"_I found a few new friends! There's Caleb, who is this very shy boy who is rather smart. Then Rowena Brown, who's this kind of annoying girl who keeps insisting on sticking around…_ Kind of sounds like you, Hermione…"

Hermione blushed as Ron sat forward a little.

"What about houses?" Ron asked, "He didn't say anything about what house he or Rose got into."

Harry, now realizing this, scanned through the letter. He found, in the very last paragraph, as if it were a side note:

_By the way, the sorting hat decided to put me in Gryffindor (thanks dad), and Rose was put in Ravencalw. Rosie doesn't want to write her parents because she didn't got into Gryffindor. She hopes she doesn't get a Howler…_

When Harry read this outloud (leaving out the thanks), as soon as he said "Ravenclaw", Ron yelled.

"WHAT?!"

"Oh that's wonderful!" Hermione said, trying to counteract Ron's rage.

"NO IT'S NOT!!" He yelled, shoving himself from the chair and throwing Hugo to the floor and Hermione to a standing position, "She's supposed to be in Gryffindor, like us!"

"Ron," Hermione tried desperately, "Just because we _were_ in Gryffindor doesn't mean she has to be!"

"The whole Weasley family has been in Gryffindor for _ages_!"

"Since when were you concerned about the 'whole Weasley family'?"

"Since I became a father!"

"Oh, yeah, that's probably why you forgot to invite your Aunt Marge to your children's birthday parties!"

"That's something completely different! She's getting old! She's a hundred and twenty one! I wouldn't want to be invited to anything if I was that old and decrepit too!"

"I wouldn't want to invite her either…" Ginny added to general glowers from the couple. "Just thought I'd say…"

"But you invite her!" Hermione and Ron said at the same time, as if trying to help their own side of the argument.

Hugo was looking at his father. "Who's Aunt Marge?"

"SEE?" Hermione shrilled, "Our own SON doesn't even know who she is!!"

Harry's head hurt from the screaming. "How did this get from Rose to Aunt Marge anyway?" He asked calmly, rubbing his forehead.

"She started it!" Ron said, childishly, as they both turned to look at Harry. Immediately, all color drained from their faces and they stopped screaming.

Harry, noticing the silence in the air, looked up at the couple and was startled by their faces. "What?" He asked, concerned.

"scar?" Ron managed in a strangled voice.

Harry realized he had his hand to his forehead and immediately withdrew it, "NO No _no!_" he said quickly to a sigh of relief from the adults, "Just a headache."

The adults shifted a little, reliving their past, as the three children looked at them, confused.

"But seriously," Harry continued, "why can't Rose be in Ravenclaw? Hermione was almost put in it!"

"You were?" Ron asked in a cracked voice as he looked to his wife.

"_Yes_," she said, glaring, "I thought I told you that!"

"Oh… Must have slipped my mind…"

"That wasn't the only thing that slipped…" Hermione mumbled, to which the children giggled.

"Well, I guess that changes things…"

Hermione threw her hands up in the hair, exasperated, as the children, Harry, and Ginny laughed.


	5. A Dare of Treachery

_From the Author: I spent a lot of time last night trying to get at least this chapter up. This is where the plot begins to curve upwards. Enjoy!_

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Chapter 5 – A Dare of Treachery 

_Dear Albus,_

_We were concerned for a moment there when we didn't see you mention which house you were sorted into. We thought something happened and you didn't want to speak of the sorting. When we got to your last paragraph though, we knew why. And you were entirely right – Uncle Ron went into a total fit of anger over Rose getting into a house other than Gryffindor. Your mom doesn't want me to go into great detail, but he said that the Weasley family had been in Gryffindor since before he knew. Don't worry about Rosie though, Aunt Hermione set your uncle straight. I don't think Rosie will be getting a Howler anytime soon, unless Uncle Ron has a random fit about it._

Albus finished reading this part of the letter and laughed, rolling over on his bed to lie on his back. He continued to read the letter as Caleb, Albus's best friend, walked into the dormitory.

"What are you laughing about?" he said, approaching his own four-poster bed.

Albus glanced to see who it was and continued reading. "A letter from my dad," he said, "He's talking about my uncle and his fit about Rose being in Ravenclaw."

"He's not gonna send a Howler, is he?" Caleb replied, looking worried.

"My dad doesn't think so: Aunt Hermione sorted him right." At this, Albus broke into another giggling fit. "Probably slapped him one right across his head. Their fights are funny to see."

"Ouch," Caleb said, a grimace on his face, "They like each other, right?"

Albus sat up and looked at Caleb, who still looked worried.

"Oh, no," Albus said quickly, "It's nothing like that. Rosie's parents love each other a lot! They just don't see eye-to-eye all the time."

"Oh," Caleb said, looking slightly relived. Just then, the door burst open and James with his two friends, Kevin and Roxas, strolled into the room.

"Hey, bro!" He said, walking in and collapsing onto Albus's bed while his wing mates sat on another bed.

"What are you doing here?" Albus asked, "Your dormitory is on the next floor up."

"I came to visit you!" James said, peering at Albus upside-down.

"You could have waited," Albus said, "I would have been down in a minute."

"Nah," James said, "I wanted to ask you something in private anyway."

Albus looked around, "James, I think you need glasses. We're not alone: You brought your friends up and my friend is here too."

James glared at Albus through narrowed eyes before turning over onto his stomach. "You know that big guy, Hagrid?"

"Yeah," Albus said, "We visited him all the time before. And Me and Caleb went down on the first Saturday and had tea with him. He teaches Care of Magical Creatures."

"Well, he was talking about how he had a cool creature in the forest behind his house in Care of Magical Creatures, right?"

"Well, yeah, but it was only for the third-years to see."

"Right! Wanna see it with me?"

"But," Caleb butted in, "you're not a third-year!"

"I know…" James said, seeming to bite his tongue on some retort, "But I don't see why we can't sneak in and see it."

"But that's against school rules!" Caleb said, "No one's allowed in the Forbidden Forest! Professor McGonagall said so at the feast!"

James was seemingly resisting the urge to slap him. He stood and looked at Albus. "But the third-years are allowed to go in, why can't we? We're going in for the same reason!"

Albus thought about it for a moment, "I suppose so…"

"Al," Caleb pleaded, coming forward to tug on Albus's sleeve, "I doesn't seem right… McGonagall set it off limits for a reason…"

"Oh come'on," Kevin said from the bed behind James, "Nothing will happen! We've got wands and magic if anything does! Roxas here knows a few more spells that we do."

"Read about a few!" Roxas said proudly, "There's a standard book of spells for each year and my big brother just went into his seventh! I saw all sorts of spells we could do to get away anything in the forest!"

Caleb and Albus looked at each other. If they knew spells to get them out of danger, why not?

They both shrugged their shoulders. "I guess we could nip in there real quick…" Albus said.

James broke into a smile, "Good! Meet us downstairs in the Atrium, behind the clock at ten tomorrow. And most importantly," James said pointing to the letter on the bed, "don't tell Dad."

Albus looked down at the letter, swallowed a large lump in his throat, and nodded.


	6. The Dementor’s Daughter

Chapter 6 – The Dementor's Daughter

"What was that?!" Kevin squeaked, spinning on the spot.

Roxas glared at Kevin through the wand lit forest clearing. "That was me, you git!" Roxas whimpered in a half-brave, half-scared tone, "Now keep moving! We're falling behind James!"

Kevin spun about and saw James twenty feet in front of him. He sprinted in his direction with Roxas at his heels. Albus and Caleb followed quickly, wands at the ready for any movement in the surrounding forest.

"Why d-d-did we d-d-decide t-to come a-ag-g-gain?" Caleb whispered to Albus.

Albus simply turned, his knees knocking together, and shrugged at his friend.

"Blimey!" a horse whisper came from ahead.

James had stopped and had been run into by his two friends.

"Look where your walking!" James said, his voice rattling slightly.

"Blimey, James," Roxas said in a tremulous voice, "why did we have to bloody come out here at night?"

"Because we'd get bloody caught in the day!"

Albus and Caleb, hands clasped together in fear, approached the stopped party. Caleb looked to his left, his wand held shakily in his left hand. Albus looked about him as well.

"Did you hear that?" Caleb whispered, his voice barely audible.

"H-H-H-Hear w-w-w-what?" Albus stuttered.

Everyone froze, listening intently.

"th-that…" Caleb breathed.

They had indeed heard it. A low rattling sound, like a maraca being rolled carelessly in someone's hands. The noise stopped briefly, then came again. Silence, then the maraca rolled again.

"Is…" Albus breathed, "Is… something… … … _breathing?_"

The boys turned, their backs pressing against each other as they faced outward, wands aloft, looking for the source of the faint rattling breath. Kevin jerked his head this way and that. Albus shook from head to toe, moving his eyes about. Roxas was pointing at everything in sight with his wand, ready to curse the first thing that moved. Caleb breathed very quickly, his wand in front of him, blinding his view. James looked about with his wand following his every turn. Then, he froze.

"Guys…" he said in a high-pitched, strangled voice.

All heads turned slowly to peer into the darkness. _Something_ was moving…

James's wand dropped to his side as a skeletal figure slowly rose from the ground. It was dark gray in their wand light. It's head was but a lump on which sat two empty eyes and a slit of a mouth. It's shoulders were covered in a black laced gown. Its hands, draping at its side, were mere skeletons. It's body was a stick, a spine, that held the arms. Its legs were sticks and feet were bones. From its head, a long drape of what looked like jet black hair hung past its feet. Its hips, which were too massive for its stick torso, were covered in a second lacy gown. It floated in their air, rising above the boys' heads.

The creature hung there, suspended in midair between the tall trees of the forbidden forest. The boys stared, shocked and scared, but somehow entranced. The skeletal figure raised a boney hand and, with a solitary finger, beckoned to James, slowly, the fingers cracking as it did. James, lost in a trance, slowly moved towards it, his wand arm dangling uselessly at his side. The other boys could only stare, eyes lost to the figure. Slowly, James moved between the forest trees and stopped, blank eyes staring at the skeletal figure. It slowly lowered itself down and, with a single boney hand, wrapped its fingers around James's torso. It lifted him up, his arms hanging limp, his breathing slow, his eyes unfocused on the forest canopy.

Inside Albus's head, something snapped. The sight of his brother being lifted up by a monstrous floating skeleton imprinted itself on his retinas and he screamed.

"JAMES!!!!!!!"

The scream broke the trance and all the boys screamed, as loud as they could! James, snapping back to his senses, screamed loud enough to wake the dead, struggling and shaking to get free. Then the figure's mouth ripped open and shrilled a piercing scream loud enough to shatter the bones of a giant!

On the forest floor, Kevin and Roxas stumbled over themselves, turned tail, and ran as fast as Firebolts back through the forest. Albus and Caleb were toppled as the two boys skedaddled at mach speed.

"JAMES!!!!" Albus screamed again.

The monster had lifted James to its head, James screaming at the top of his lungs. The mouth opened wide, and came down on James's stomach, latching on to his skin, and a horrible sucking sound ensued. Caleb, next to Albus, was screaming louder than ever, but none were screaming louder than James, who had broke the height threshold of his lungs and screamed louder still. The pain shot through James's limbs, making them shutter. His hand relinquished the grip on the stick in his hand, and it fell to the forest floor.

Albus, suddenly finding feeling in his wand arm, pointed it at the beast sucking from his brother's veins and yelled, "GET OFF HIM!!!"

A blue-red spark shot out of his wand and flew at the beast. It stopped about three feet from the monster, blasting away at an invisible shield. The monster took no mind as he kept sucking at James's guts. James's terrified screams were fading. He was losing consciousness...

Suddenly the monster released its bite, James dangling limply from its hand. It dropped the body onto the forest floor in front of Albus and Caleb. It then breathed, the rattling breath no longer coming from it, but a hungry breath, one that had been treated with something to whet its appetite.

"James!" Albus cried, crawling next to his brother's body. Caleb followed, staring at the ghostly skeleton as it seemed to look down upon the body of its victim. Albus put his ear to his brother's chest and drew in a rattling breath.

"He's still alive!" Albus cried through relieved breaths. "James! Wake up! Wake UP!!"

James stirred, groaning and clutching his stomach, which was punctured but seemed not to be bleeding.

"James!" Albus cried, tears streaming down his face. Caleb dived over the forest floor and grabbed James's wand from under the floating figure.

James opened his eyes to look upon his attacker floating above him.

"you…" he said weakly. And, with a single arm, he grabbed his wand from Caleb and yelled "_Depulso_!"

Nothing.

James's eyes boggled. "_Depulso!_" He yelled again with more might.

Not even a puff of smoke issued from the wand. There was no reaction. Nothing.

The skeletal figure over James then opened its mouth… and laughed. The inhuman cackling chilled the boys' spines, up and down. They stared in deadly disbelief. Then, the figure did a sudden backflip and, as it did, seemed to rearrange itself, with body parts flipping this way and that, skin coming off and spinning about, and cloth flying off, twirling into balls, and transforming into other garments, which spun about the rearranging figure.

Then, James landed in front of them.

James, lying on the ground, stared, wide-eyed, at his mirror image. His mirror image smiled a most evil smile a James could create.

"I don't think you'll be needing this, _Muggle!_" James's mirror image said in an evil tone as it bent down and plucked James's wand out of his hand.

"_Muggle?!_" James replied in a horse voice.

"Yes…" it hissed back, "_Muggle_… _DEPULSO!!_"

And James was blasted away from between Albus and Caleb, flipping backwards through the underbrush and slamming hard into a tree. A cracking sound issued from either James or the tree, and James went dead limp again.

"NO!!" Albus screamed as he scurried over to James. "James? Are you okay? James!!"

"Albus!" Caleb called from the clearing.

And when Albus looked back, the mirror-James had vanished.


	7. The Getaway Car

Chapter 7 – The Get-Away Car

"Caleb!" Albus called though tears, "Come here and help me!"

Caleb crawled over to James's limp body. His best friend was scared, so much so his body was vibrating. He looked to Albus across James's body, waiting for instruction.

Albus leaned over and hugged James, his arms draped around his shoulders. His head was pressed to his chest, where he heard a faint beat of a heart. Albus sat up, wiping tears from his eyes.

"We have to get him out of here."

"Are we gonna just drag him through the woods?" Caleb asked through a shaky voice.

"Do you have another way?" Albus replied harshly.

Caleb nodded, "Right…"

They got up and pulled James by his shoulders away from the tree and over the ground. As they moved, their ears prickled with the sounds of the forest. Where as it was so quiet before, it was now exceedingly loud. Twigs cracked. Birds swooped. Animals ran. Bats screeched. Crickets chirped. And must that wolf howl at the moon?!

Some thing scurried though the underbrush behind them and Albus turned so fast, his wand drawn, he nearly flung it into the woods.

"_DEPULNSNO!!_"

A great red flare shot itself into the woods and hit a branch. The branch splintered and fell, catching fire.

"That wasn't supposed to happen!" Caleb said in a strangled voice.

"Maybe I did it wrong?!" Albus replied, watching the flames lick at the branch.

Then a great screech came from the opposite side of the flames. The boys froze, wands pointed at the source. _What good will it do?!_, Albus thought, _We don't know any spells!_

They looked about them, searching for a way out when the screeching came again and a abnormally large spider came into view.

"Bloody hell…" Caleb said, point his wand at the thing. Albus looked over and swore loudly. Celeb then flicked his wand, yelling, "_Petrificus Totalus!_"

The spider immediately went rigid, its legs going straight to the ground. It keeled over, into the fire, which caught immediately.

"Pet… what?" Albus asked.

"_Petrificus Totalus_" Caleb replied, "the body bind curse!"

"Might need that…"Albus said, turning to pull James's limp body again. Then something else moved in front of him.

"_Petrificus Totalus!_" Albus cried, pointing into the night. Another spider then fell from behind a tree. Albus heard Caleb shoot another spell into the darkness and another body fall. But the rattling of spiders could be heard all around them.

"Caleb…" Albus asked, worried, swinging his wand uselessly through the air, "Have anything… better?"

"No…"

Suddenly, an overgrown spider jumped down from a tree and landed with a squeal on James's body.

"AAAAHHH!!" Albus screamed and threw a random curse at him, sending it flying into the distance, exploding on impact with a tree. Another spider jumped down, then another. There were more spiders coming down, and more, encircling them, advancing on their prey.

"HELP!!!" Caleb cried as a spider landed on his shoulders. Albus swung around and pointed his wand at the spider, but also at his friend. And he stood, his wand hand shaking, his mind drawing a blank. And Albus watched helplessly as the spider leaned back, its jaws ready to bite Caleb's soft neck.

BEEEEEEPPP!!!!!!!!!

Suddenly, out of the woods a strange blue car came flying in and ran into Caleb. Caleb, his feet knocked from under him, fell back onto the hood of the car, throwing the spider off of him. Caleb landed hard, his shoulders making a further dent into the already severely dented hood. Albus stared down at the car, watching his friend slide off the hood and onto the forest floor. The car suddenly open a door, its lights seeming to beckon him in.

"Com'on Caleb!" Albus yelled, helping his shaken friend to his feet, "Toss James inside!"

The two boys lugged James's limp body over to the car, shooting flares and the few curses they knew from their wands in an attempt to keep the approaching spiders away. They pulled James into the car, climbing inside and dragging him across the back seat. They fell down on top of each other as the car door slammed shut, squishing a spider in its gap.

Squished on the back seat floor, Albus struggled to get off of Caleb.

"What the bloody hell is a car doing in the forest?!" Caleb said, breathing into Albus's face.

"I don't know, but it bloody saved out necks."

Albus had gotten a grip on the seat and was pulling himself up when the car jerked forward, knocking him back on top of Caleb. The car honked its horn as it now sped between trees and over spiders. The boys could hear several spiders hitting the windshield and squishing under the tires. Albus now managed to get himself upright and he pulled Caleb up to look over the front seat. The wheel was turning on its own and the drive shaft was flipping from gear to gear.

"Al!" Caleb yelled, point forward through the windshield, "We're gonna crash!"

"Blimey!" Albus mumbled as he saw a great stone wall coming into the view of the single headlight. He braced himself for the crash as the gear shifter flipped into its lowest gear and a strange whirring sound started up. As just as the boys braced for the crash, the car turned – vertically – and climbed into the air, hitting its back tire on the stone wall.

* * *

"But sir! Please! You must believe us!" 

"No!" Professor Longbottom said, his wand aloft as he held Kevin and Roxas by the scruff of their necks using a particular spell. "I have never heard of a 'girl dememtor' before and I refuse to believe you."

"But sir!"

"Enough!" Neville said, and the boys fell silent. They were kneeling in the cold grass of the grounds, several feet away from the Herbology Greenhouses. Neville stood before them, his back to the forest, having caught them out of beds at night. "Now," Neville continued, "I think thirty points from Gryffindor will be sufficient for now, and I do not hold the right to give you detentions yet, but I assure you, Professor –"

"Look!" Kevin said, pointing over Neville's shoulder.

"I'm not naïve enough to fall for that one, Mr. –"

"No! Really!" Roxas said, looking in the same direction as Kevin, "There's something flying this way!"

"Now Really! What is…" Neville fell silent as the strange sound of a motor came to his ears. Neville turned now and saw flying from above the Forbidden Forest…

"A Ford Angela?!"

The distinctive car careened through the air, turning in his direction. His eyes widened as it aimed for the lawn immediately under him. Neville turned with the swiftness of a Quidditch player and waved his wand at the boys, screaming "_Depulso!_"

The boys flew away, landing smoothly and harmlessly on the grass thirty feet away. Neville turned again to see the car feet from him and dove to the ground. The car rumbled over him and landed with a screech and a lurch on the grass, turning about and ripping dirt from the lawn. Neville jumped to his feet again, pointing his wand at car as it moved towards him.

"What do you want from me?!" He screamed as the car lurched to a halt. The back door flung open and a boy jumped out.

"Neville!" The boy cried, running over to him and desperately grabbing hold of his arm.

"A-Albus?" Neville said, being pulled over to the back of the car.

"Please, Professor!" A second voice cried as another boy jumped from the car as well, "You have to help us! James is hurt!"

"J-James P-P-Potter?!"

"Yes!" Albus cried as he pulled him over to the back seat.

Neville gasped as the limp body of James Potter came into view. "We have to get him to the hospital wing now!" Neville turned at once and sent a bright blue streak from his wand, which flew away to the castle. He then turned and conjured a stretcher for James Potter.

* * *

_From the Author: I'm sure you reconized this scene... (couldn't think of something more creative... but it works)_


	8. A Call from the Potters

Chapter 8 – A Call from the Potters

The sunlit grounds shimmered in the morning air. The tress waved their branches in the wind and the lake shimmered in the light. The Whomping Willow, still sitting on its hill, rustled its leaves at passers-by. The great lake, basking in the glow of the morning, rippled from where the giant squid had just come up to grab a bird to eat. The forest, though menacing, seemed to quiet at this time of day, as if resting its eyes from squinting meanly all through the night.

_CRACK!_

Three people appeared out of nowhere just outside the gates to the grounds. The woman hitched up the girl in her arms and followed as the man ran forward into the grounds.

"Harry! Please wait!"

Harry paused for a moment, looking back as Ginny came up to him, holding Lily's hand.

"Oh, Harry, I think I splinched her."

Harry turned, concerned, to look at Lily, who was crying softly. Sure enough, one of Lily's fingernails was missing.

"Oh, you'll be fine," Harry said, annoyed, "It'll grow back…"

Harry turned to move up the path to Hogwarts front doors. Ginny, patting Lily on the back, ran after her husband.

"Harry," Ginny called softly.

"What?" Harry answered back, annoyed. He kept walking swiftly.

"Do you remember this place?"

"Of course I remember Hogwarts! Why wouldn't I?"

"No, I mean… this place…"

Harry stopped and turned to glare at Ginny. His look softened though as he saw what she looking at.

The tree was still as it was twenty years ago, its branches shading the soft grass underneath it. It was under these branches, those many years ago, where Harry and Ginny had sat and talked: talked about the day, talked about her OWLs, talked about Quidditch, or even those sweet nothings that no one ever knew about. It was here that, after the blaze of Quidditch glory, and the kiss seen 'round the world, they went and talked, went and kissed, went and just sat, doing nothing.

Harry walked up to Ginny, who stood, holding Lily in her arms, staring at the tree. Harry put his arm around his wife, and squeezed. Tears welled up in Ginny's eyes as she looked upon the place.

And they both turned, one in the same, to look over the hill at the white marble coffin. Its cracks, which marked where it had been split before the final battle, still imposed on its perfection. But it had been placed back together, never, hopefully, to be touched again.

Harry turned to his wife, whose tear-streaked face looked up at him. Lily, imposing on their memories, looked at her mother, then at her father, with a quizzical look. Harry bent over and took Lily into his arms before turning and walking to the castle doors.

Ginny stayed behind for a moment longer, staring down at their spot, hers and his. She walked over to it and bent down, looking into the grass. She reached down and picked up a small shiny object. She looked at it in her hands, kissed it, and then stuck it in her pocket before getting up and following Harry to the castle.

* * *

Harry and Ginny moved swiftly through the entrance hall, where several students were heading in and out of the Great Hall for breakfast. Many of those students stared at Harry as he passed, but he didn't mind. They moved up a few steps and into the Atrium. 

"Whoa!"

They stopped dead, staring around at the magnificence of the Atrium. The sun shone brilliantly through the stain glass window, creating its pattern on the gray and white marble floor. The Atrium Clock ticked quietly, ticking to quarter past, where the chimes rang, magically floating through ears equally across the grounds. Though they stood next to clock, it did not hurt their ears to hear the chimes, but if they were across the grounds and down at the lake, they would still hear the chimes ringing in the Atrium.

"When did they change this?" Harry asked no one in particular as he shifted Lily in his arms.

"I'm not sure," Ginny said, "but I can guess when…" She pointed to the skylight and Harry saw the brilliantly made battle scene. As Harry examined the various faces and battles immortalized around him and his mortal enemy, he reached up and touched his scar, memories of pain coming slowly to him.

Ginny was looking at him. "Harry?"

Harry shook his head as he looked back down at her, his hand still at his scar. "Memories…" He said in a horse voice. Ginny noticed his eyes were quivering, reflecting extra moisture.

But now, though as magnificent as the Atrium and its tribute to Harry was, they were lost. The grand staircase was what they knew how to navigate and it was long gone. And, as if someone were reading their mind, a familiar voice rang out.

"Harry!"

"Neville!" Harry said, spotting the professor up on the fourth floor balcony.

"Up here, Harry! Take the marble stairs!"

Harry and Ginny looked to where Neville pointed and saw the vast marble staircase. They hurried across the sun-drenched floor and up the stairs to the fourth floor. They rounded the bend and followed Neville as he traveled down a radial hallway, past windows looking out over the grounds, and into the bright Hospital Wing, one of the things that hadn't changed much since Harry was a boy.

Harry and Ginny entered and saw the only occupant lying on a corner bed. Two other boys were sitting on either side of this bed, their heads lowered, and at the foot of the bed stood the Hogwarts Headmistress.

"Albus!" Harry said as he moved quickly over to his son who was sitting to the right of the Headmistress.

Albus looked up in time to see his dad swoop in and give him a one-armed hug, Lily occupying his other arm. Ginny came in next and embraced her son. "I'm so glad your okay…" she kept mumbling.

Harry set Lily down in another chair and turned to see Professor McGonagall standing erect, eying him over her spectacles. She looked no older than last he saw her in that emerald cloak, nineteen years ago. (He has seen her prior, but she was always wearing Muggle attire when she visited.)

"Mr. Potter," She said in her stern voice.

Harry looked at his former teacher and bowed his head slightly as he addressed her, "Professor"

McGonagall smiled slightly.

"Professor," Harry continued, "we came as fast as possible after we got your owl."

"Well, I do hope so," she stated, "After all, this is your son we are talking about…"

All eyes turned to the boy lying in the hospital bed. He looked peaceful, sleeping in the bed, though Harry knew from the letter that was sent to him that all was not well.

"Mr. James Potter, here," McGonagall continued, "has had his ribs mended and his skin fixed. From what Madam Pompfry can tell, he was bitten in his gut by something with rather sharp teeth." McGonagall turned to his parents again, "The interesting part of this, though, it that nothing internally seems to have been damaged. All his organs are in the right place and functioning properly."

Albus snorted, and attention was drawn to him.

"However," McGonagall continued, peering at Albus, "as your younger son has crudely pointed out, James has not acted normally. He apparently thinks that he is not actually lying in a bed, but rather on some rather comfortable air. He always avoids looking down, afraid that if he rolls the wrong direction, he will fall. This has also lead to some interesting bathroom incidents."

Now the other boy snorted, a slight smile appearing on his face. Albus looked up and told him, "Shut it, Caleb…"

McGonagall looked over to the boy and said plainly, "Thank you, Mr. Purile." Caleb quieted at once. McGonagall turned back to the parents, who looked thoroughly worried. "According to our eye witnesses, here," she continued, pointing to each of the boys, "Mr. Potter was attacked in the woods by a 'Girl Dementor'"

"What was he doing in the woods?" Harry asked quickly.

"What were all of you doing in the woods?" Ginny asked also.

Harry's brow furrowed, "You were all in the woods?"

"They were eye witnesses!" Ginny replied for them.

"And it was at night," McGonagall added calmly.

"At Night?!" both parents spat, and both boys bowed their head in shame.

"Yes," McGonagall, passive and watchful, continued, "and if Mr. Longbottom here hadn't caught them and a couple other boys who ran from the woods, it is not likely that they would be here to tell the tale."

Neville, who had come over at the mention of his name, blushed. "Well," He spoke up, feeling something was missing, "If you must know, I didn't save them from the woods. These boys had found a Ford Angela –"

Harry spun to Neville, "A flying one?"

"Er… yeah," Neville replied and Harry's eyes widened, "Th-They found this car and had ridden it out of the woods with James in the back."

"So you saved his life?" Ginny asked, turning to Albus.

"I… er…" he stuttered, "I guess…" he had never thought of it that way. Now he felt especially bad for James.

"So," Harry asked, "Albus, James, and a bunch of their friends went into the woods and found a strange beast and almost got themselves killed. Is that the gist of this?"

"James coaxed me to come!" Albus said, trying to defend himself, "He led us in there!"

"Yeah," Harry said, bending down to meet his son's eyes, "And look what happened to him…"

Albus only gulped as he stared at his father's green eyes.

"Come here," Harry said, standing up and grabbing his son by the hem of his cloak, "Let me save you the humiliation of a howler…"

And with that Harry pulled his son out into the hall and closed the door.

McGonagall turned to Mrs. Potter. "Such a filthy hypocrite, isn't he?" She asked to the adults murmuring agreement.

"Professor McGonagall…" Caleb said, speaking quietly, "I swear that the thing that attacked James was a girl Dementor…"

McGonagall turned, "I assure you…". But she stopped. Her eyes had caught a particular eye that shone from a portrait. And as she stared at the portrait of a hospital ward, Albus Dumbledore turned back to continue talking animatedly to the painted hospital nurse. McGonagall, who was staring with her lips slightly parted, closed her mouth to return to her characteristic thin-lipped demeanor. "I am almost certain that there is no such thing as this 'Girl Dementor' that you speak of," She continued to Caleb, "but I will check it out to make sure."

Caleb's confused look turned into a slight smile. McGonagall smiled back before looking back up at the portrait and seeing Dumbledore walk out of it. And she swore she saw him wink.

* * *

Harry descended the grand staircase with James in his arms. James was awake, but he had his eyes closed. He could hear other students passing him in the halls and imagined what it looked like. Ginny descended the stairs next to Harry, guiding Lily with a clenched hand. Lily so very much wanted to run around the Atrium and bask in the sunshine in Hogwarts, but her mother forbade it: she would get the chance to do that when she attended Hogwarts. 

Other students were moving up and down the stairs, moving to the first classes of the day. The flow was hindered, though, by the Potter family descending the staircase, much in the way that traffic slows when a police car has pulled over to the side of the road next to a wreak. The rubbernecking students on either side of the staircase slowed to get a glimpse of the Legendary Harry Potter, who was idolized in their stain glass ceiling, and his son, who was supposed to be attending Hogwarts but was being taken home by his parents.

Several of the students, in full view of Harry, pointed at him and then at the ceiling. Harry was becoming annoyed at this, but then looked at his own carved face in the ceiling. A thought crossed his mind, _Well, at least they don't think I'm evil anymore…_

One particular girl had stopped on her way up the stairs, making traffic flow around her, as she watched the Potters descend.

"Jimmy?"

Harry stopped, staring straight out, bewildered at the name. James, though, had stirred.

"Re… Rebecca?" The words came cautiously from his lips. Though he was leaned over his father's shoulder, facing up the steps, he kept his eyes closed.

"Jimmy, what's the matter? Why are you leaving?"

Ginny looked up at Harry from three steps below. Harry had a mischievous smirk on his face. James gripped his father's shoulder, wanting to leave, but his father stayed rooted to the spot.

"Jimmy…?" Rebecca asked again from a couple steps above Harry and James.

"I…" James started, "I… need to leave… for a while…"

"Jimmy, why won't you look at me?"

James said nothing. Harry, still smirking, patted James on the back, mumbling, "Go on, son… look at your girlfriend for Merlin's sake. You may never see her again…"

James's lip started to tremble and he slowly opened his eyes. His chest started heaving as he looked, his eyes welling with tears. "Rebecca…" James whispered, reaching a hand to her, "Touch me…"

Harry's smile had vanished and he looked back and saw James and Rebecca touch hands, hold hands. James smiled a little and he mumbled under his breath, "you're there…" When Rebecca looked confused, James continued, "Write to me, will you? Tell me how Hogwarts is while I'm gone, okay?"

"Okay…" she said, smiling slightly.

Harry started his way down the stairs again, the stopped students moving apart to let him through. James's hand broke away from Rebecca's, and James started crying softly again, closing his eyes.

Harry and Ginny continued out, across the Atrium, through the entrance hall, and out across the Hogwarts grounds.

"Ready, Lily?" Ginny said as they reached the exit, picking up the little girl.

"Yeah, just don't splinch me again…"

"I'll try not to…" she said smiling at Harry. "Back to the house then?"

"Yeah…"

"NO!!!!!"

Harry turned around quickly to see who had screamed behind him. James wiggled out of Harry's grasp and jumped down to the ground, where he fell to his knees and reached to the gates of Hogwarts, his eyes bulging.

"WHAT HAPPENED TO IT?!?!" James screamed.

"Happened to what?!" Harry asked, truly scared, looking around to see the problem.

"HOGWARTS!! IT'S IN _RUINS!!!_"

Harry spun around to look at Hogwarts, which gleamed magnificently in the distance, fully and completely whole.

"Hogwarts is not…"

"IT'S DESTROYED!!! AND THERE'S A SIGN!!!"

"What sign?!" Harry said, searching frantically for any sign in the vicinity.

"'DANGER!! KEEP _OUT!!_'" James read, and broke down and bawled into the earth.

Harry turned to Ginny with wide eyes.

"The spell…" she said.

"…to keep out…"

They both turned to James. "…muggles…"

Harry swooped down on James, picked him up as fast as possible, grabbed Ginny's arm, and, with out letting James look at Hogwarts for another second, spun about into the pressing darkness.


	9. The Contraption

_From the Author: I don't think I'll be able to bang out chapters like I could before since this is about where my stream of ideas ended. I assure you that the story will stay at the same wild pace, but it may falter in its line of logic. Now though, with this chapter, is where I'm worried I might lose some avid Harry fans because of a turning point in the plot. Read on and Enjoy!_

* * *

Chapter 9 – The Contraption

"So the Ford Angela is still out there?!" Ron said, unbelieving, into Harry's ear.

"Yeah, I know…" Harry replied as he walked up the steps, holding his mobile phone to his ear, "It's amazing."

"Blimey! It must be thirty or forty years old! It wasn't that new when we drove it to Hogwarts!"

Harry's mind took his back to the sensation of flying through the air over the scarlet Hogwarts Express. "No wonder it crashed…"

"Yeah, well…" Ron said, sounding abashed, "not exactly our best moment, was it?"

"Detention for weeks afterward? Merlin's shirt, no."

Ron snorted a laugh down at Harry's mention of the famous wizard's shirt.

"Alright, Ron," Harry said, unable to stop himself from chuckling a little as well, "I got to go. There's something I need to take care of."

"Alright, mate, I'll see you round."

"Bye."

Harry turned off the mobile and put it in his pocket, the one opposite from his wand. As he did this, he could not help smiling, realizing that he was being both Muggle and Wizard at the same time. He had even convinced Ron, who was so steadfast against it for years, that having and using a mobile was better than sticking his head into a fireplace. Teaching Ron how to use it had been another feat in itself that took a good five years, but…

Harry stood outside his son's door. As his internal conversation about being half-muggle, half-wizard had played itself out, he couldn't help but adding the fact the he now had a muggle child.

And the whole family knew for certain that he was a muggle. Just the day before, James had been sent by his mother to the broom cupboard to release the magical broom to clean up a mess that she had made. Harry had forgotten that long ago he had put on the broom cupboard door a muggle guard spell to keep the pesky muggle guests that came over once and a while (Mr. Donavin) out of this cupboard and the magical stuff stored inside. Harry was reminded, though, when James grabbed the door handle and a loud alarm went off, sending James running away and into his mother's arms.

The family was also reminded that James had indeed had his magic taken from him when he went to ride a broomstick around in the field behind the Weasley's house. Ron and Hugo had teamed up with George (who came and visited once and a while) in a small Quidditch match against Harry, Ginny, and James. Alica (George's wife of four years) had just sent up the Quaffle when James lost control of his broom and fell into the field. Hermione immediately repaired any physical damage, but the emotional upheaval of it made him quit the match. Harry had caught his broom and insisted the he still play, but he said that the broom no longer obeyed his every command. He had walked home by himself.

As Harry thought of this, he heard a whimper from inside James's room. He opened the door slightly and saw him lying on his bed. He laid on his stomach in only his pajama pants, reading a letter that he had pulled off of the tawny owl that sat next to him on the bed. Harry moved inside, opening the door more and making it creak.

James spun so fast that the letter went flying and the owl jumped into the air, flying overhead and hooting angrily.

"Oh," James said, his black hair disheveled, flung across his eyes, "Hi dad". He was pulling the sheets over him quickly, looking utterly surprised.

Harry raised an eyebrow, "Am I interrupting you from…something?"

James scowled as rolled over and pulled the covers over him more, seemingly wanting to hide something. Harry moved inside and sat down on the bed as James pulled the covers up further, so Harry could only see his head.

"What are you doing up here, in bed, undressed, when its ten past eleven?"

James scowled at him further. "Nothing…"

Harry bent over and picked the letter up off the floor. He saw that it was signed "Rebecca" and understood.

"Do you like this girl?" Harry asked, indicating the letter.

"Maybe…"

"Does she like you? The date on this is from a couple weeks back…"

James didn't answer.

Harry looked at James, who was still pulling the covers taut over himself, looking angry except for his glistening eyes.

"Ah," Harry said, "Well why don't you start locking your door when you decide you… want to be alone? If we really need in, that's what _Alohamora_ is for."

James raised his eyebrows at the thought. Harry got up and went to the door. "Your mother's worried about you," he said, "simmer down, get dressed, and come downstairs, okay?"

James, still covering himself in bed, nodded. Harry closed the door and he immediately heard James run over and lock it.

* * *

James sat at the kitchen table and poked at his sandwich. Behind him, Ginny waved her wand to do dishes. On the other side of the table, Harry was reading the Daily Profit, which had a rather large picture of the Minister of Magic, Kingsly Shaklebolt, waving enthusiastically at James. On the floor, Lily was making a bunch of cards float in the air with her built up magic. James, meanwhile, scowled at his food.

"Now I know what it feels like to be a squib…" he mumbled.

Harry folded the top of the paper over to look at him, knowing what he had said. At that moment though, the door bell rang. Ginny set the dishes to wash themselves before she went to the door.

"Oh," she could be heard from down the hall, "Mr. Donavin…"

Harry looked up as he heard the old man speak. He sounded especially excited.

"Hello, Mrs. Potter. It Harry here?"

"Why… I think so…" Ginny said, not knowing weather to keep Harry safe from the man or let Harry deal with whatever he had done this time. She was too late though, because Mr. Donavin spotted Harry down the hall, sitting at the table, and he moved inside quickly.

"Harry, my boy!" Mr. Donavin said as he appeared in the kitchen. "I have completed it!"

Harry had put his paper down, "Completed what?"

"The suit, my boy! The contraption I have been working on for ages now!" Mr. Donavin practically bounced up and down with excitement. "I want you to be the first to see it! I'm certain you will take a liking to it."

Harry was skeptical. But Mr. Donavin had just spotted James sitting in the seat on the end of the table, poking at his food with his finger.

"Why hello…" the man said, leaning over to look at James's face. James saw the man out of the corner of his eye and turned to look at him.

"Hi," James replied grumpily.

"I thought you went off to school…"

"What?" Harry said audibly. It was one thing to have the muggle neighbor poking around, seemingly interested in only his own little world, but quite another to have him know when and who went off to school.

"Well," Mr. Donavin said, possibly knowing that was crossing Harry's mind, "I knew you had school age children, and this one here had gone off to school before…"

"Well I'm not off at school now…" James said grumpily, his eyes shaking, "I can't anymore…"

"Why not?" the man asked kindly.

"'Cause I'm a Muggle now!" James said loudly.

"A what?" Mr. Donavin replied, absolutely confused.

"Now, James!" Harry reprimanded, "You do not use that word in the presence of a…" But he had to stop himself. What was a less derogatory term for muggle?

"A muggle?" Mr. Donavin asked politely, knowing that he had completed Harry's sentence. "Is that the term, then, for us normal and non-magical people?"

Harry turned to Mr. Donavin and nodded, ashamed.

"Well," Mr. Donavin said, waving it off, "I've heard worse. So did I hear right when you said you were… not magical?"

James was crying into his sandwich, dotting it with moisture.

"Mr. Donavin," Harry said, "It is a very touchy subject…"

But Mr. Donavin was smiling. "Harry, my boy, I want you to come over and bring him with you."

"What?"

But Mr. Donavin was turning, and he ran into Ginny. "Oh, sorry, my'lady. Would you like to come and see too? You could bring the younger gal."

Ginny, not sure what to say, did a sort of nod-shake with her head. Mr. Donavin, however, took this as a positive and moved swiftly out of the front door.

* * *

The old man waddled down the basement steps with an obvious excitement. Harry, leading James by a hand, and Ginny, holding Lily in her arms, came slowly down the stairs. The old man was fussing with a machine. Harry and Ginny stopped on the stairs to look over the railing at the man. For a second more he fussed and then stepped back.

"Whoa!"

"Wicked!"

The children gave their childish approval at the brilliantly shining blue and white jump suit. It was completely made of metal plates, most of which were blue and a few where white for style. It was hung on a mannequin, its arms pointing straight outwards.

"This, Mr. and Mrs. Potter, is my invention." Mr. Donavin said, waving his arms at the metal jumper, reminiscent of a show girl, "I call it the MagiSuit one!"

"MagiSuit?" Harry said, skeptical, "As in Magic Suit?"

"Yes!" Mr. Donavin said, jumping up and down like a child at Christmas, "I've been watching the magic community that has hidden itself in Godric's Hollow for quite a while."

"Are we that obvious?" Ginny blurted.

"No!" the old man said, waving frantically, "No! No! I just knew what to look for! You see, I figured that I could do half of what you magic folk did with science!"

"Science?" Ginny replied, skeptically, having been taught since birth what wizards thought "science" meant.

"Observe!" the man shouted and bounded over to the other side of the room. He took a bowler hat out of a corner's pile of junk and set it on the floor. He then bounded back over to the jumper and moved the mannequin's arm to point at the hat. He then took what looked like a microphone from the neck of the suit and pronounced into it, "_Wingarduim Leviosa!_"

Several lights flashed on the chest of the jumper and, suddenly, something like a ball of heat, altering the look of the air around it, shot from the extended arm and hit the bowler hat. The hat immediately sprung into the air a foot off the ground.

Harry found his mouth hanging open as the old man moved the arm around and the bowler hat followed. The man then spoke into the mic, "_Finite_" and the hat dropped to the ground. The man then spoke into the mic, "_Depulso!_" The lights lit up again and the same ball shot from the palm of the hand and smashed into the hat, causing it fly backwards into the wall. The old man then said, "_Accio!_" and something like a heat beam shot at the hat and it quivered and flew to the outstretched hand, bouncing off of it to fall to the ground again.

The old man then turned the jumper towards the Potters standing on the steps, causing them step back. The man then spoke, "_Delusion_" and the suit disappeared.

"Whoa!" Harry heard himself say, "How...?!"

"It can not truly make itself invisible, like your cloak does," Mr. Donavin said, gesturing towards Harry, "But it does a sort of chameleon effect, which works, unless you move quickly."

Mr. Donavin then spun the mannequin (which was invisible except for its head), and Harry noticed a ripple in the shape of the spinning suit in the air.

"Practically invisible," Mr. Donavin said, as he pressed something on the jumper and the head of the mannequin disappeared too, "No one would notice it if they didn't look." The man then said in the direction of the suit, "_Apreo_" and the suit came back into view, this time with a helmet on the head of the mannequin, which Harry supposed is what made it invisible.

"Dad…" Harry heard James say. Harry turned to him and he saw a look of joy in his eyes.

Ginny immediately knew what James was about to ask. "Oh, No!" She said.

"But mum!!"

"No! I do not want you wearing that crazy contraption around! That thing could be dangerous! He just finished it! You don't know what it could do!"

"But mum! I can't do magic anyway!"

"Harry!" Ginny said, looking to her husband, who also had an odd look of wonder in his eyes, "Back me up!"

"Uh, well…" Harry couldn't see why his son couldn't try it… for a little while… After all, James looked more happy now at the prospect of donning the suit than he had been for weeks.

"Harry!"

"Oh, let him try it… for a moment…"

"YES!!" James said jumping.

"Harry…"

"Well, come on, son," Mr. Donavin said as he pressed a button on the front of the suit. The suit suddenly expanded in all directions, the various metal plates which made up the thing moving outward, revealing the mannequin underneath. The plates then began to move, folding the suit, little by little, into the shape of a backpack on its back. After fifteen or so seconds of plates moving around, the plates that once covered the maniquen's chest moved and spun around and clamped together on top of the backpack of metal pieces.

James looked at his father with strange curiosity and wonder. James then slipped passed his father. He eagerly approached Mr. Donavin, who now held the metal backpack. James stood now as the man slipped the elastic straps of the backpack over James's arms and then one over his head to wrap around his waist.

"It's heavy…" James said as Mr. Donavin stepped back.

"Ah," he said, "It's heavy now… But wait until the suit is activated!"

"How do I do that?" James said, craning his neck to look at the man behind him, afraid that if he turned his body, he would fall over.

"It's like a spell!" The man said as Harry and Ginny exchanged glances, "You hold your arms out straight and say, _Activiso_!"

James did as he was told, "_Activiso_!"

Suddenly, the backpack extended bars down James's arms and legs. The chest plates that shelled in the backpack expanded quickly and metal plates seemed to fly out from between the cracks. Plates flew along rods and wires, spun around hinges and screws, skated along James's arms, all vying for a particular position, building the metal jumper around the boy's body. Ginny had reacted naturally, making to move down the stairs and run to James, but Harry had extended an arm before hand to stop her. Now James stood, greatly bewildered, as the suit formed around him at such speed it was amazing. Finally, the chest plates swiveled around and locked in over James's chest, and the deployment of the suit was complete, all in about five seconds flat.

James stood, looking very much like a futuristic blue robot with only his head, which remained uncovered, as a reminder that he was still a boy just incased in a metal jumper. James looked at himself. "Wicked…" He said, looking at his hands encased in elastic and metal gloves, "This is bloody brilliant!"

"James," his concerned mother called from behind Harry's arm, "Are you okay?"

"I'm great! This is brilliant!"

"Do something, James!" Lily called.

"Yes!" Mr. Donavin called, grabbing the bowler hat, "Do something on this!" He tossed the bowler hat as James turned. Pointing his hand with the palm facing to the hat, he yelled, "_Wingarduim Leviosa!_" The hat caught itself in midair and James guided it back to him.

"Cool! What else can it do?!" James said as he caught the hat and the jumper suit terminated the spell for him.

Mr. Donavin listed now all sorts of different "spells" it could do, such as _Incendeo_, _Confundo_ (which made someone dizzy more that confused them), _Diffindo_, and _Lumos_.

After James was happily playing around, his mother warning him against everything, Harry stood next to Mr. Donavin.

"Harry, my boy, does this count as pay back?"

Harry, shocked by the sudden arrival of this question, turned to Mr. Donavin and stated, "We'll see. It hasn't blown up yet and it's made my son rather happy."

Mr. Donavin turned to watch the boy in his suit.

Harry turned to the old man again and, unable to resist, asked, "That was going to be your jumper, wasn't it?"

The old man's face had gone red. "Is… is it that obvious?"

"Yes…" Harry said, returning to watching James, "But you know, Mr. Donavin, nothing can replace magic."

"Oh I know," Mr. Donavin replied, "I have no intention of replacing magic. I just want to put some where it wasn't before…"

Mr. Donavin continued to smile at James as Harry gave him a curious look.


	10. An Odd Occurrence

_From the Author: Sorry it took so long. I just spent the past few hours re-reading all of my chapters and fixing things here and there. Most of them were grammar issues, typos, and the way things were worded, so re-reading most likely isn't necessary, except if you want to see a couple of the ways I made the dialog more slightly more British (I'm American, if you couldn't tell), since the accent will matter a little later (cough.. oh excuse me...). Anyway, enjoy the next chapter!_

* * *

Chapter 10 – An Odd Occurrence

"Thank you, Professor McGonagall"

McGonagall gave a stern, but sincere, smile, "Your welcome, Mr. Deveret."

The student turned and walked out of the office and down the spiral stone escalator. McGonagall leaned back in her chair and heaved a sigh. Being headmistress was extremely hard, though not nearly as hard as it was when Harry's mortal enemy was still alive. She got up from her chair and went over to the cabinet where the stone basin full of silvery liquid air sat. She released some thoughts into the bowl, clearing her head and easing her mind. As she looked down at the swirling memories, she saw, swirling between this year's sorting and the intense Battle of Hogwarts, the memory of James Potter lying in the hospital bed.

She turned and saw Albus Dumbledore waking in his frame, as if he sensed that she wanted to talk.

"A girl Dementor?" she said, to which Dumbledore smiled.

"Ah, yes. The musing of two eleven year olds," Dumbledore said airily.

"But that's all it is," McGonagall replied, "Never in all my years of school, all my years of travels, and all my years of teaching have I ever heard of this 'Girl Dementor'."

"Yes, I see," Dumbledore replied, "So that means that it couldn't exist?"

"Uh…" McGonagall started, but she knew Dumbledore had more to say, and she fell silent.

"I'm disappointed, Minerva. You mean to tell me that you haven't learned from the incident with the Sorcerer's Stone, the discovery of the Chamber of Secrets, and Arthur Weasley's attack from the snake?"

McGonagall turned to the pensive and stood above it, looking into it. As she twirled her wand in the pensive, each of these things that Dumbledore mentioned floated to the surface of the swirling silver substance. She looked back at Dumbledore.

"But these things had the possibility of happening," she said to those misty blue eyes staring back from the painting, "Never have I heard of a Dementor with a gender. Dementors don't have feelings and they don't mate. They couldn't possibly have a child!"

"And who says that it is a Dementor?"

McGonagall paused, looking absentmindedly at the floor beneath Dumbledore. She licked her lips before forming the words on her mouth.

"A mutation?"

She looked at the old face as it formed the hint of a smile and nodded slowly. McGonagall turned to face the doorway of her office. The sun shining through the window behind her desk cast shadows on the rug from all the small spindly instruments that sat on the tables by the door. She turned back to the stone basin, thinking, watching the memories float about in the pool of silver thought. Then, without speaking a word, she turned and walked swiftly through the doorway. As she stood on the spiral steps, now moving downwards steadily, she crouched and transformed.

As the steps slowed to a stop, a tabby cat with strange square markings around its eyes moved off the steps and stopped right in front of the stone gargoyle as it jumped back into place. The cat stretched its legs a little and then sat down, flicking its tail left and right. A few students moved around the corner of the corridor and walked by.

"Look at the cat!"

"Aw, it looks cute! I wanna pet it!"

"No, we need to get to class! I'm sure it'll be around later! McGonagall would surely dock points if she saw us walking around between classes."

The students hurried away, the cat looking after them sternly. _Well at least one of them owns half a brain,_ McGonagall thought.

The cat started walking along the corridor, heading in the direction of the Atrium. It had been a few years ago that McGonagall started transforming when she wanted to pace the hallways, looking for miscreants. She had always had the desire to be omniscient about the school, and since she started prowling the halls in her cat form, she has been, to a certain extent. And the best part of it was that none of the students knew she could turn into a cat and none suspected her cat when they saw it (this was greatly helped by the fact that Mrs. Norris had died and Filch retired, unable to cope with the loss of the foul cat).

As the cat reached the Atrium, it jumped up on the railing of the balcony and sat down, scanning the large expanse for any student. It was not surprised to see a couple Slytheren students walking about, and less still to see Peeves flying over to them and whacking them on the head with a couple of candlesticks, sending them running down a radial hallway. What it was surprised to see, so much so that it nearly slipped off the railing, was James Potter.

_What?! But James is in no fit state to return! He had lost his magical ability, somehow, and now can't even open a door with a muggle alarm on it!_

But there he was, walking across the Atrium floor, heading to the stairs with a couple of books under his arm.

At that moment, a floating walkway, one of the five that floated aimlessly around the Atrium, stopped near the cat. The cat jumped down and trotted over to where the walkway had stopped and the balcony's railing had magically dropped out of sight. It trotted over the walkway, stopped halfway, and poked its head through the railings to continue to stare at the anomaly that was James Potter, starting his way up the vast marble stairway.

The walkway shuddered slightly now as it shortened, the railings on either end of it hopping back into place. It lowered now, down a floor, then another, and moved forward towards the grand staircase. It turned, creeping around the chain that held one of the three chandeliers, and repositioned itself at a spot on the fifth floor, stretching again to connect one side of the wrap-around balcony to the other, the balcony's railing jumping down out of sight. The cat had to switch to the other side of the walkway now, but when it got there, it had lost sight of James. It looked around frantically for the boy, but it could not find him. It trotted off the walkway now and down a radial hall, which had several large open windows on one side which looked out onto the lake . The cat continued to trot at a fast pace down around a corner. It stopped outside a large door, which was open to a teacher's office. Inside, a professor sat behind a large wooden desk, facing a student who was sitting opposite him.

"But, Professor Spartz, sir, can't I try the test again?"

"Finnigan," the professor said, "you must revise and practice before you sit it again. Just sitting it again will not make you any better. You must practice!"

"But sir, if you could…?"

The cat jumped up on the second chair in his office. Both the professor and the boy turned to see it sit down on the chair, looking avidly at the professor.

"Who's cat is that?" the Finnigan boy asked.

"I'm not sure," The professor lied, "So, Mr. Finnigan, if you could go to your common room now and practice, it would be much appreciated. If you do well enough, you might be able to sit it again, _might…_" He added after seeing little Finnigan's elated look. "Now off you go!"

The boy jumped down off the chair and left the office, Professor Spartz following him to the door and closing it behind him.

"You know, Minerva, you never make my job easier by these rude little interruptions you always like to make," He said, turning around the see a human Professor McGonagall in the seat where the cat was minutes ago.

"That's the duty of being Deputy Headmaster, Remus," she said, "After all, you volunteered to be Deputy Headmaster after Flitwick turned the job down."

"I wouldn't want to be headmaster either if I was shorter than all of my students."

McGonagall's thin mouth drew up a small smile, "That's what books are for; thick ones are especially nice."

Professor Spartz sat down heavily in his seat. "What seems to be the problem today?"

"Are you familiar with the Potter's boy, James?" McGonagall started.

"Of course, he attended my classes before he had to leave for medical reasons."

"Are you aware of the medical reasons?"

Spartz raised an eyebrow, "No, why?"

"He had to leave Hogwarts because he lost his magical abilities," she replied calmly.

"Minerva, that's impossible."

"That is what I thought," she said, "Until I received a letter from the Potters telling me that when they left the castle with him a few weeks ago, he cried and stated that all he saw of Hogwarts were a few ruins and a sign…"

"…'Danger, Keep Out'…" Spartz finished for her, recognizing the charm which was cast to keep muggles from seeing the magnificent school and its inhabitants. "Are you sure he didn't just fake it?"

McGonagall lowered her glasses, "Not only is it unlikely that any member of the Potter family will ever read a book such as _Hogwarts, A History_, especially with Hermione Weasley around, the Potters assure me that James had sounded quite sincere when he screamed bloody murder at out gates and was crying for weeks afterwards, a hard feat to pull off if you were faking it. They also tell me he has set off Muggle Warning spells, fallen off broomsticks, and has not done a single magical thing since he left. I assure you, Remus, _he was not faking it_."

Spartz sat back up straight in his seat, adjusted himself, and said, "So he has lost all his powers and turned, essentially, into a muggle. Quite strange, I must say, but why bring him up now?"

McGonagall inclined her head, "I just saw him."

"You… you what?"

"I just saw him walking through the Atrium."

"Then he must have gotten better; his magic must have returned."

"No, it hasn't," McGonagall said simply, "Mr. Potter has recently sent an owl telling me that James's magic has not returned and he had found a means of being happy, for the moment."

"…a means of being happy?"

"Yes," McGonagall said, but did not elaborate.

"So James is at home… and James has returned here?"

"So it seems…"

Professor Spartz leaned forward on his hands, thinking deeply. A knock came at the door suddenly and Spartz looked at McGonagall, who waved him in the direction of the door. Spartz got up, went to the door, and opened it slightly to find Albus Potter staring at him.

"Albus!" Spartz said, alerting McGonagall, who was about to transform, "What can I do for you this fine morning?"

"Well I wanted to ask you about a particular spell…" He began when McGonagall came to the door, pushing Spartz out of the way.

"Potter?"

"Professor McGonagall?!"

"Potter, come in here," McGonagall said as she grabbed the boy by the arm and led him inside. Professor Spartz, stunned and confused, blinked at McGonagall before closing the door. McGonagall set Albus down in a chair and then pointed her wand at the door and muttered, "_Muffilito_".

"Professor? What—?"

"No time right now, Potter," McGonagall said as she approached the boy and kneeled in front of him, "Right now I need you to look me directly in the eye. Professor Spartz, please find some chocolate and do not interrupt me."

Albus looked at Professor Spartz's quizzical look before letting his green eyes rest on McGonagall's beady eyes. McGonagall removed her wand from her robes and said, "_Legillimans_"

Albus was suddenly seeing himself, as if he were there now, staring out the window at his brother while he showed his dad the new spells he learned at his first year in Hogwarts. Then he was in the kitchen, reading his letter from Hogwarts saying that he had been accepted. He was suddenly in Diagon Ally, lugging a bunch of books up onto the counter of Flourish and Blotts and turning to see his mom bring in a barn owl just for him. He was then in front of old Ollivander as he handed him yet another wand and immediately took it back and tossed it into a pile. He was now on the Hogwarts Express, watching his dad get smaller and smaller, his hand still raised in farewell.

Suddenly he was in the woods, looking up at the boney figure raising a limp James up to its mouth. He heard himself scream again, but the scream was being drowned out by something, fading from his ears and the vision was fading from view.

Albus was suddenly awake in a cold sweat. He was collapsed on the chair without any memory of getting there. McGonagall was still before him, but her attention was on something else. A silvery strand of something was floating in front of her and she was playing with it with her wand. She then conjured a bottle and captured the silver strand inside. Albus stared, incredulously, as the strand split into two identical copies inside the bottle. McGonagall then put her wand inside the bottle and extracted one of the silver strands. She swished the strand around, examining it, before she put her wand tip with the strand to Albus's temple. The strand seemed to wiggle itself into his head and he suddenly remembered the horror of the night when James lost his powers.

Albus looked up at the headmistress as she stoppered the bottle. "P-P-Professor…" Albus asked, shaking, "Wha… what did you… do?"

McGonagall looked down through her glasses at Albus. "Thank you, Mr. Potter," she said in a business-like tone, "Now I can finally figure out what this 'Girl Dementor' is about." She got to her feet, snatched the chocolate that Professor Spartz was holding in his hands, gave it to Albus ("Eat up, it'll make you feel better"), and turned and left the room, leaving behind a pair of very bewildered people.


	11. Torn Between

_From the Author: I'm not too sure, but I might have to raise the rating on the story because of up-coming material. Then again, JKR never sold a Harry Potter book as anything but children's books, so maybe I'm safe... Oh well, on to the next chapter!_

* * *

Chapter 11 – Torn Between

Harry sat on the back porch, watching. Watching the clouds play on the mountains. Watching the trees sway in the breeze. Watching his son, James, playing with his next door neighbor and a couple of children in a strange metal jump suit that granted him abilities that any muggle would wish for and any wizard would scoff at.

It was strange, seeing James in this suit. He was not wizard, because he lost his magic, but he was not muggle either, because of the powers granted to him by the suit. He was… in between, a division of human into and of itself.

Ginny came out with a platter of sweets. She set the platter down and sat down next to Harry, taking a cauldron cake as she leaned back in her chair. Harry knew that she was there but did not look at her. Ginny took a bite of the cauldron cake, watching Harry, not James. Harry remained solemn and rigid as Ginny, munching on the cake, played with the small silver key charm around her neck. They sat for a few minutes, Ginny watching Harry, Harry watching James, before Ginny broke the silence.

"McGonagall," she snapped and delightfully watched Harry twitch.

"Shut up," Harry said, annoyed.

"You're not still mad, are you?" Ginny said, setting down her half eaten cauldron cake, "You know McGonagall did the right thing, right?"

Harry sat, staring stubbornly at James as he did another levitating spell for the enjoyment of Mr. Donavin and the amazement of Hugo and Lily. Just then, the back door opened and Hermione and Ron moved out onto the porch and sat down in a couple chairs just behind Harry and Ginny. Ron immediately picked up a pumpkin pasty and began to devour it, slowing down only after seeing his wife's evil look. Hermione turned back to looking out over the yard when she caught Ginny's eye. Getting the silent message, Hermione leaned over to talk to Harry over his shoulder.

"Harry," she began, "I don't see why you are so mad at McGonagall for looking at Albus's memories…"

"Because," Harry started suddenly, "she should have asked me first."

"Rubbish," Ginny said, her hands abandoning the charm, "She couldn't have told you she was going to do it if she had indeed done it on a whim."

"But that's just it," Ron said through a half-full mouth after Harry remained silent, "why did she do it on a whim?"

"Because it just occurred to her," Hermione said, "she said so in the owl she sent. And she needed it done immediately to investigate the appearance of—"

"She shouldn't have done it at all!!" Harry said forcefully, cutting off Hermione and making the children look up from the yard.

Ginny sighed, "Harry, what is so wrong—?"

"What if there was something private that my child remembered while she was groping about in his mind?!"

Ginny stared with a look of furious worry, "Harry-if-there's-something-you're-doing-with-our-children-that-the-rest-of-the-world-shouldn't-know-please-tell-me-now." she said in one worried breath.

Harry turned, startled, to look at his wife, who was staring back with a strange look of worry, anger, and anticipation. He glanced at Ron and Hermione, who looked like they were trying not to listen.

"Ginny, its…" Harry hesitated then, "Alright, its just I see nothing wrong with them doing magic outside of school!"

There was a collective exhale from the surrounding adults.

"Blimey, Harry, that's it?" Ron said, "Why I let my kids to a couple spells here and there too... you know, when I'm watching! We thought you were gonna say you—"

"Ron, that's enough," Hermione said, giving Ginny a relieved look.

"Well, I wouldn't want McGonagall to find out," Harry said, "I mean, I always hated the rule about not being able to do magic until you were seventeen."

"Harry, that's put in place to keep wizard children from getting hurt," Hermione said.

"I know that," Harry said, glaring at Hermione, "but you never know…" He turned back to Ginny and stopped dead. She was looking at him in the way one looked at a deer that had just rammed into your car – a look of disgusted hatred.

"Is that all you were worried about, you git?!" Ginny said in a high pitched voice.

Harry felt as if he had just been slapped. Ron and Hermione looked away again.

"Our son," Ginny said in a tone so malevolent it could make a Devil's Snare wither, "Our son has lost his magical ability, he's walking around in a ruddy space suit, and he's been sighted back at Hogwarts walking around like he's bloody normal, and all _you're _worried about is if the Headmistress has Found Out You Let Your Kids DO MAGIC AT HOME?!" Ginny's face was white, he red hair on fire, and she was rising out of her seat, "YOU INSENSITIVE GIT!!"

And with that she stormed off, Hermione and Ron scrambiling to get their chairs out of the way before she tore through. She opened the sliding glass door and slammed it shut behind her, causing the glass to shatter to the ground.

Harry sat slouched down in his chair, staring after her. The children and Mr. Donavin stared quietly at the porch. Ron sat in his chair, shaking from the wake of the rage, glad he didn't get full force. Hermione leaned over and silently fixed the window glass before turning to Harry in a matter-of-fact, though slightly shaken, mood.

"Harry," Hermione began in a quiet voice, "that was a bad thing to say."

"no…really?" Harry replied quietly, "I didn't know…"

The kids had begun playing again and Harry sat back up in his seat. He looked over to James and saw him pick up a rather heavy rock, the suit reinforcing his strength.

"You don't think that James has been sneaking off to Hogwarts, do you?" Harry asked. Hermione made a sound of annoyance.

"Seriously, Harry, how thick can you be?"

Harry turned to glare at Hermione as Ron took another bite of his pumpkin pasty.

"Maparentbly," Ron attempted to say through a full mouth, "Mee ith preby fick"

Harry grinned widely at Ron, glad he broke the mood, as Hermione looked at him with amused disgust.

"Ron," She said, "Act your age, not your wand size."

Ron looked between the two with a confused look. Hermione turned to Harry, deliberately turning her back on Ron.

"Harry, it is not possible that James could be jumping back and forth between Hogwarts and here. First off, he is an underage and unaccomplished wizard – and no, Harry, doing a wicked bat-bogey hex is not being accomplished. Second, he is not of age, he can't legally Apparate to Hogwarts, and he hasn't even been taught how to yet. Third, you _can't_ Apparate into Hogwarts and I wouldn't expect him to go running back and forth across the lawn each time he had to return home. Forth, since he has lost possession of his magical abilities, he can't even _see_ Hogwarts, let alone attend. Fifth—"

"That suit is wicked cool," Ron said, having completely ignored Hermione, "I think I'm going over to look at it. Coming, dear?"

Hermione simply gave Ron a deadly look.

"Suit yourself," he said and got up and went over to James and the children.

"Ronald will never change," Hermione said, eyeing her husband, "I am honestly surprised he got up the courage to ask 'will you marry me?' But then again, he celebrated my stupid answer but running up and down London in his wizard's attire telling everyone he ran into that he was bloody engaged." Hermione dropped her head into her hands as Harry laughed.

"That would've been fun to see," Harry said as he watched Hermione shake her head.

Harry had been so engrossed in the monologue that he failed to notice the barn owl that landed next to him. So when it nipped at him with its beak, he jumped.

"Ow! Oh, there's a letter from Al!" He said and untied the rolled parchment from around the owl's extended leg. Hermione, glad to get away from her past, watched, interested, as Harry unrolled the letter.

The sliding glass door opened and Harry turned to see Ginny walk out and shut the door with less force than before. "Finally noticed the owl?" Ginny said, hints of her previous anger still in her voice and face as she leaned against the door frame, playing with the small silver charm around her neck.

Harry turned back around, taking a second glance at her, swallowing his retort. He held up the letter as Ginny walked over and read it over his shoulder.

_Dear mom and dad…_


	12. One Way Letters

_From the Author: I am pleased to announce that I have written the summary of the last couple chapters. That mean THERE IS AN END!!! This means a great deal to me considering that most of the stories I write are half written and end up on the junk pile, never to see a conclusion. Granted, there are a few stories that I've written endings to that never had those endings connected by story in the middle, but... well... Anyhow, I'm not sure how many more chapters there will be, but I hope I get the thing written before I head off to school on the 22nd. But now, without further ado, the next chapter: If you remember the last chapter ended with "Dear mom and dad..."_

* * *

Chapter 12 – One-Way Letters 

_I'm getting more and more worried about James. You told me that he is still at home, playing around in some strange suit, but yet I see him here in Hogwarts, walking around and talking with people. _

Albus laid down his quill, thinking. He was sitting on his bed in the deserted boys' dormitory, his pillow propped against the headboard and his back leaned against that. His one leg was outstretched on the bed while the other was stood up, a book balanced on it. On the book, his letter to his parents was sitting, waiting to be completed.

Albus looked over to the bed stand, where his ink bottle and his barn owl sat, the owl preening itself. Albus looked over to it and it looked back for a moment and hooted happily at him. Albus smiled, reached over, and stroked it a little. He then picked up his quill, dipped it, and set it to the parchment.

_And the people he's talking with weren't the same people he was friends with before he was bitten. His two friends, Kevin and Roxas, who were his best mates before the attack, came to me the other day and swore at me that James had to have his head examined. They said that he had just blew them out of a meeting they had made on the Hogwarts Express. They were going to meet behind the clock to go sneak off somewhere but he never showed._

_And what is worse it that James seems to have made new friends of people he never even met before. I saw him the other day walking along in the Atrium with some fourth-year Ravenclaw and a second-year from Slytheren. Rosie noticed too and she reckons that he's some sort of impostor that was using something called Polyjuice Potion. _

Albus stopped now as he heard someone come up the stairs and open the door. Caleb walked into the room and moved over to his bed, smiling at Albus as he went. Albus waved back and watched him pull a toy Quaffle from his trunk.

"Bored," Caleb said as he fell back onto his bed and began to toss the red ball up into the air and catch it again.

Albus simply shook his head, smiling, and returned to his letter. He re-read some of what he wrote as he dipped the quill, and returned his quill to the parchment, now stone-faced again.

_And to make it worse, he seems to be getting into trouble more often. McGonagall has taken to looking at him more often when she's around, and her cat keeps following him around too (the cat she has is rather strange – it's very stiff and not very playful). Even Mr Rondill, the caretaker, is keeping a sharp eye out for him because he gets into strange situations._

_And he never talks to me anymore either. He just walks past like I'm not there, keeping an eye on these new friends. The friends he chose are weird too. They're a mixed bunch of personalities: one's the kind you'll always find in the Library, another one you can easily find beating up a first-year, like me. When I went to McGonagall one day, after Caleb got beaten up by the Slytheren boy James is friends with, she asked me weather the boy used a bunch of jinxes and hexes. When I told her that he did, she dismissed us right away for the Hospital Wing._

Albus leaned to dip his quill in the ink. He spotted Caleb lying on his bed, looking at him with the Quaffle rolling about absentmindedly in his hands.

"You still hurt any from Thursday?" Albus asked him.

"No," Caleb replied, "Madam Pompfry fixed me right up."

"Oh, yeah," Albus remembered, and returned to the letter.

Caleb jumped up and moved over to Albus as he started writing another paragraph. "You do know," Caleb said, pointing at Albus's letter, "that it's not proper to start a paragraph with 'And', right?"

Albus scanned through his letter before he looked up at Caleb with a scowl. "Weren't you lying on your bed being bored? I think you need to finish that…"

Caleb smiled through his return-scowl as he returned to lying on his bed. Albus looked back on his letter and continued to write.

_And his girlfriend is in a right state. When James returned to Hogwarts, she was so happy that she went up and hugged him. But he immediately threw her off and threw a Banishing Spell at her! Now she's all crying and mad that James is acting strange. I'm just glad I don't have to deal with her…_

_And Caleb just told me that you are not supposed to start each paragraph with "And" but I'm going to ignore him._

_And that is all I'm gonna write. I love you mom, dad, and I hope James gets better soon. Tell Lily hi for me._

_And love,_

_Albus_

Albus blew on the ink as he set his quill down in the ink bottle. Caleb looked over as Albus rolled the letter up and tied a sting around it. Albus got up from his bed and tied the letter around his owl's leg. He then went over to the window, opened it, and let the owl fly away into the bright blue sky.

Just as Albus turned around, the door opened and someone walked in.

"Albus?" she said.

Caleb, startled when he heard a girl's voice, missed the Quaffle and it fell on top of his stomach, knocking air out of him. He sat up roughly and stared at the girl standing in the doorway in disbelief.

"Rebecca?" Albus said, also startled, "You can't come in here! This is the boy's dormitory!"

Rebecca looked around as if she hadn't noticed she had walked into the wrong dorm. Her look was disheveled and tired, and she hadn't brushed her hair in a week.

"Albus," she said, looking back at him, "I need to talk to you."

"Me?" he said, looking about to make sure no one else named Albus was present in the room.

She moved over and sat down on Caleb's bed, Caleb moving away to either make room or to get away from her cooties.

"Albus, I'm… I'm confused about James…"

"You aren't the only one," Albus said, sitting down on his bed.

"It's just… James throws me away in the corridors, he skives past me in class, and he throws me mean looks in the common room… but yet…" She hugged herself, pausing in her sentence, not sure if she should continue.

"…but yet…" Albus said, wanting her to continue.

"…but yet… he keeps sending me letters."

"What?" Caleb said, creeping over from the other side of the bed. And as he did, she produced six or seven letters from inside her robes and dropped them on the bed. Albus got up and moved over to the bed to examine the rolled pieces of parchment.

"_Dear Rebecca, Why haven't you written in so long…_" Caleb read from one letter.

"_Dear Rebecca, I miss you. What's going on at Hogwarts that you won't write to me about it?_" Albus read from a second.

"_Dear Rebecca,_" Caleb read from a third, "_If you get this letter, please write back and tell me that you have. Please tell me what's wrong, and I'll try and help…_"

"Please, stop."

The boys looked up at her and saw her holding her head in her hands, her shoulders heaving. She cried softly, letting her tears run off her hands and fall onto the bed spread.

"I'm sorry…" Albus said, setting down the letter he had picked up.

"Yeah…" Caleb said, placing the letter he had carefully among the others.

"That… That last one…" Rebecca said between sobs, "was… the last one… he sent… But… But why?"

Albus sat, looking at her cry for a moment. He then got up and went over to his trunk and pulled out a letter. He went over and handed it to her. She looked at it, moving the hair from her eyes, and read its contents. The letter told Albus that James was at home, happy with a new metal jump suit that he got that allowed him to do "magic". It also told him that Albus's dad suspected James of being very sad about his friends and how they didn't write to him anymore.

Rebecca looked up at Albus, her eyes wide.

"He… He's at home?" she said, to which Albus nodded. "But, but he's here! I saw him…" Albus also nodded at that.

"We're not too sure what's happening either," Caleb said, "But we know Albus's dad wouldn't lie."

Rebecca turned and stared at nothing in particular, some understanding dawning on her. "Then," she said shakily, "Then I've been the biggest git in the world…"

Albus and Caleb exchanged frightened glances, "No! No!" they said

"You just didn't know!"

"He'll understand if you tell him!"

"And he'll be happy to know that you're okay!"

"You just have to write him!"

"Thanks, boys," she said, still upset, "I'll try… hopefully he'll understand."

"And we can try and figure out what's going on here," Albus said, trying his best to cheer her up, "You can help us and we can get to the bottom of it together!"

Rebecca smiled now, looking at Albus. "Thank you…"

Albus smiled back, happy she wasn't crying anymore.

A tap came at the window and the three of them looked to see Albus's barn owl and James's tawny owl holding a large bundle between them. Albus went to the window and let them in, allowing them to land on the bed. Albus pulled the note off of the package and Caleb immediately went to work on the bundle itself. Albus read the note aloud:

"_Dear Albus, I had been holding out on giving this to one of you kids for a while. But given the circumstances, I think the time has come, so I pass it on to you. Use it well. Dad._"

Albus looked down at the package as the paper was ripped off and a silvery gray cloth that felt strangely like woven-water rippled out and onto the bed.


	13. All the Stronger

_From the Author: GAAAAAHHHH!!! Dang. I was just informed by my sister (who's also following the story) that I messed up dearly at the end of the last chapter. The note is NOT directed at Caleb, it is directed at Albus: (_"_Dear Caleb, I had been holding out..." is supposed to be _"_Dear Albus, I had been holding out") Sorry about that. I had been stuggling with those names for a while now: I use Caleb a lot (a favorite of mine) where as Albus I have never used before. THe story has been changed and it now makes sense. Sorry about that. Now on to the next chapter!!_

* * *

Chapter 13 - All the Stronger 

"Did you get Hagrid's letter as well?"

"Yes, it's quite sad."

"Well, Buckbeak has been looking rather dreadful for the past couple years."

"Hagrid thought it was because its child ran off somewhere."

"Nah, my dad says that Buckbeak's been around for over twenty five years now. It's just getting old. Your mum said that it was about time he passed away."

Albus and Rose were walking side by side around the third floor balcony, making their way to their Defense Against the Dark Arts class. They turned a corner of the wrap-around balcony and moved across the grand stairway.

"You don't think that Broadwings is gonna come back for its father's funeral, do you?" Rose said, glancing at Albus as she adjusted the books in her hands.

"I don't think so," Albus said, his pack flung over his shoulder, "Hippogriffs aren't that smart, are they? And they most certainly don't have a way of talking across big distances, do they?"

They continued to walk around the balcony. They rounded the bend to travel down a radial corridor, where Albus stopped, pulling Rose to a stop as well.

"Rose," Albus said, his face losing color, "you don't think that that was what was in the forest when Hagrid mentioned it, do you?"

"What do you…?"

"A Hippogriff! You don't think that was what was in the forest, do you? Hagrid had a Hippogriff in the forest to show the third-years?"

Rose's eyes went wide. "Oh, Merlin," she said, shaking her head, "I hope not. That would mean you boys went into the forest for nothing…"

Albus turned to stare in no particular direction, thinking of how horrible it would be if James had indeed lost his powers over something as trivial as seeing a Hippogriff – most likely one he's seen before when the Potter family visited Hagrid on past occasions.

Just then, Rebecca came around the corner.

"Albus," she called as she approached, snapping Albus out of his thoughts. Albus turned to see Rebecca as she stopped near them. "Albus, have you seen James recently?"

Albus looked to Rose, who shook her head. "No," He said, "I haven't. Why?"

"ATTENTION ALL STUDENTS:"

The three of them jumped as they heard Professor McGonagall's magnified voice echoing through the halls of the castle.

"ALL STUDENTS MUST REPORT TO THEIR COMMON ROOMS IMMEDIATELY. ALL CLASSES HAVE BEEN POSTPONED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. I REPEAT, ALL STUDENTS TO THEIR HOUSES IMMEDIATELY!"

The amplified voice died down, replaced with a commotion that emanated from all around them.

"I wonder what happened," Rebecca said as students began pouring into the halls from their classes.

"I don't know, but we'd better get to our houses," Rose said and moved to join the crowd of traveling students when Albus grabbed her sleeve.

He pulled both Rose and Rebecca back into a nearby, suit-of-armor-filled alcove. Without letting Rose get out another word of protest, he pulled the silvery cloth from his bag and tossed it over him, Rebecca, and Rose. They immediately became invisible to everyone but them.

"An invisibility cloak?!" Rose said to double "shh!"'s from her companions. She lowered her voice and continued, "Where did you get one of these?"

"My dad sent it," Albus said as he reached for Rose's bag, "Com'on! We want to go see what happened."

"I don't know," Rose said, wringing her hands, watching the hall as several translucent blue cats ran down it, opposite of the students, "Don't you think we'll get in trouble?"

"Not if you keep your mouth shut!" Albus retorted, grabbing his bag and stuffing both bags behind the butt-plate of the suit of armor. It reacted with surprise and Albus hissed at it, "Stop it! We'll be back for our books in an hour or two!" The suit of armor, still acting uncomfortable, stood upright.

"Com'on, then," Albus said to the girls as he began walking out of the alcove, "This cloak is only so big! We need to stay close!"

The hall only had a few stragglers at this point, running past to catch up to their houses. Teachers were coming out and locking the doors to their classrooms and then hurrying away in the direction of the Atrium.

"Com'on," Albus whispered, "let's follow them."

The three kids, moving side by side, supporting the cloak above their heads, followed the teachers as they moved swiftly into the Atrium and turned in the direction of the grand stairway. As the trio moved into the Atrium, they saw that the Atrium had reacted in a strangely organized fashion.

The seven staircases had lined up and made a long stairway that led from the ground floor up to the seventh floor, interspersed with the walkways so students from other floors could join the line of students steadily making their way up or down it. Gryffindor and Ravenclaw students filed up the floating stairways to their towers on the seventh floor, while Hufflepuff and Slytheren students filed their way downstairs to their houses down the corridor behind the clock and down in the dungeons, respectively.

The teachers were mounting the grand stairway, either making their way to their houses to organize the students, or running, full out, up to the seventh floor and down a radial hallway. Albus turned and lead the girls up the grand stairway to the seventh floor and down the hall in question.

A handful of teachers were crowded around a single classroom door. As the trio approached invisibly, the teachers parted and a stretcher glided out from the classroom. Two teachers walked on either side of the stretcher, each holding a hand of the forth-year Ravenclaw girl on the stretcher.

"Where am I?!" the girl was crying, "Am I still at Hogwarts?! What's happened?! Why can I only see sky?! Who's holding my hands?! Please answer me!!"

"It's okay, Ashely," the one teacher spoke, "We are right here…"

"Professor Sinistra, is that you?! Why can't I see you?! I can feel you, but I can't bloody see you!!"

The stretcher passed the trio, the girl still screaming about not being able to see Hogwarts. The trio approached the now slightly blocked doorway. Albus craned his neck to see around Mr. Rondill and over the head of Professor Flitwick. He was then pulled out of the way by the girls as the two staff members parted to let through another stretcher. This one held a second-year Slytheren boy, who was also writhing on the stretcher, calling in rude language to his accompanying teacher about how he, too, could not see the ceiling of Hogwarts.

As the stretcher passed, the two staff members moved inside, clearing the doorway. Albus treaded softly inside the bright classroom. Though an indoor classroom, with no windows lending light from the outside, the room was lit bright blue from the two Patronuses, a cat and a hawk, that prowled the room. Standing near the door were Professor McGonagall and Professor Spartz, overseeing the other staff members as they examined the room from floor to ceiling.

"Any witnesses then?" Professor McGonagall asked as she looked about the room.

"No," Professor Spartz replied, "they were all attacked. By what, we're not sure of."

"Whatever they were attacked by," Mr. Rondill said, pausing from his inspection, "the thing made them bloody mental– thinking they were floating in mid air above a ruin or something…"

McGonagall looked around more before turning to Professor Trelawney, who stood a few feet from McGonagall, her glasses magnifying her eyes strangely.

"Who tipped you off then?" she said, "Not your inner eye, was it?"

"No," Trelawney said in her misty tone, "I am sad to say that I did not see this one coming. I possibly missed it in the tea leaves somewhere…"

"Mmmhmm…" McGonagall replied, all too obvious in her disbelief.

Trelawney looked slightly flustered, "No, the boy who tipped me off to this horror was rather strange. He came up to my room under the impression that he had to attend my class. He seemed rather flustered as well and proffered me a first name of Ashely, but of course I saw right through his lie, because the Inner Eye can tell…"

"…that Ashely is a girl's name and not one fit for a boy?" McGonagall replied flatly. Trelawney dropped one of her shawls.

"But of course I knew that," Trelawney said, picking the shawl back up, "You see, after I convinced him that I knew he was lying, he told me that he was none other than a son of Harry Potter, whom I had predicted to live to have several childr—"

"Which son?" McGonagall replied, suddenly interested, "Albus Potter?"

"No…" Trelawney said as Albus, Rose, and Rebecca held their breaths, "The name he supplied me was none other than James Potter."


	14. The Young Apparition

_From the Author: Oh, bother... It seems that storm that swept over New England has decided to make a swimming pool out of my basement again. Now I'm going to have to hang my desktop computer up on the clothes line to dry for a while. It'll be fine, don't worry. In the meantime, anyone up for a indoor pool party? - :) Okay, well, it wasn't that terribly bad, but this still will hinder my ability to write for a while (plus the stench will be pleasant). I'll try and write more chapters when I can. _

_Anyhow, this is where the plot twists into a nice double helix shape. You may be confused for a moment, but it will clear up in due time. Just take some Advil. :) Enjoy!!_

* * *

Chapter 14 – The Young Apparition 

The front door slammed shut.

Dylan breathed hard, sprinting up the slope of the driveway and out onto the road. A car honked loud, slamming on its breaks as Dylan rounded the bend and ran up the hill along the side of the road, away from the apartment building. Behind him, a blue pickup truck roared to life and shot backwards out of its parking space, spinning the tires dangerously and leaving black marks in the parking space. The rough, bearded man with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth threw the pick up into drive and screeched forward onto the road, causing the car that had stopped for Dylan to stop again, laying on its horn angrily.

Dylan glanced back, his breath coming in short bursts. He saw the blue pick up fly out onto the road and turn his way. Dylan looked forward again, focusing all his attention on the uphill slope in front of him. The blue pickup screeched towards Dylan, its driver now hanging out the window with a .22 pistol in his hand.

Dylan heard the shots, three of them, firing from the pistol. He saw the guard rail beside him dent and a rock in front of him blast into the air. He kept running, heading for the intersection where he knew he could make a getaway into a back alley or the woods. A fourth shot rang out.

Dylan heard it bounce off, the shot ringing as it hit the Shield Charm he knew he had cast but didn't know how. The man in the truck raged, seeing the Shield Charm shimmer through the air and die.

"You magic Motherf—" He completed his sentence with a couple more shots. Dylan ducked around the stop sign at the intersection and the man followed, his truck screeching past another couple of cars that almost collided in their attempts to stop for the man. Dylan, out of breath, dove around a garage, heading for the woods behind it, as a seventh shot rang out.

"AAAHH!" Dylan screamed, the bullet biting into his ankle and ripping clear through. Dylan stumbled, falling over the guard rail he had meant to jump, and tumbled into the woods. He hit ground on his back and toppled over himself down the hill, rolling and twisting between the trees, blood pumping out through his ankle because of his fast-beating heart. His side rammed hard into a tree, stopping his decent and knocking the wind out of him.

He heard the truck stop and the man shout vulgar language as he got out of the car to pursue him on foot. Dylan winched in pain as he extracted himself from the tree. A gun shot rang out and the bark above Dylan's head rained down on him. He twisted now, trying to get up, determined to get away from the man so hell bent on injecting a bullet into him. But Dylan fell, his ankle unable to hold him. He attempted to get away again, gun fire echoing in the distance, but he fell again. And as he fell, a strange sensation overcame him, and he blacked out, falling into a high pressure darkness that seemed to shove itself upon him.

_No… I need to get away… far away…  
_

* * *

James Potter sat on the back porch, his metal backpack lying next to him. In his hands, a piece of parchment was determined to re-roll itself as he read it. The letter was from Rebecca, her first one in a while. In it, she explained that she had not written to him because she thought he was back at school. 

"What do you mean?" James said aloud to himself, "I haven't set foot inside Hogwarts for a couple months now…"

A late autumn leaf fell from a tree above him as he continued to peruse the letter, examining its every detail. He had longed for weeks to see the curly g's, the abnormal a's, and the exquisitely dotted i's written anew upon a sheet of parchment, but now his longing was in understanding the meaning of each word, understand why she hadn't written, and what this "other James" she spoke of was about. Was it someone who looked like him that she thought was him? Or was it someone with the same name whom she had fallen for since he left? These questions burned in him, making him sick with rage.

He tossed the letter to the side, making his tawny owl jump at his crude action. It glowered at him and stuck out its leg, wanting him to reply.

"Just shut it for a while," James said, "I'm thinking…"

The owl set its leg down, still staring at him, waiting for him to give it something to do. James sat there and burned. What was Rebecca saying? Did she still like him? Or was this "other James" the guy for her now? James longed to ask his dad, but he was off at work, possibly doing more desk work, the stuff he hated to do. His mom wasn't even home, having taken a trip to Diagon Alley for necessary supplies. He was stuck at home to watch Lily. Lily, who wanted nothing to do with him after the letter arrived, had gone inside and was probably watching some muggle TV show.

James, however, was slouched forward in the porch chair, his arms on his knees, glaring at the ground. He looked to his right to see his owl still sitting there.

"Don't you have something else to do?! Aren't you hungry?! Go hunt something!!"

The owl hooted indignantly, but stayed put. James sighed angrily.

"Quit staring at me, you bloody bird!!"

The owl turned its head away and looked out at the back yard.

"Thank you…"

_CRACK!!_

James jumped, startled severely, as he heard a body fall with a grunt into the bushes in the back yard.

"What was that?!" He said, standing to look out over the yard, his anger suddenly forgotten, "Who's out there?!" No one returned his call. Concerned, James grabbed the metal backpack and slipped it on himself. Adjusting the microphone, he extened his arms to the side and said, "_Activiso!_" The backpack expanded and the suit formed rapidly around his body.

Now full prepared for the worst, James moved off of the porch and into the backyard. He gingerly stepped his way over to the bush, his hands at his waist, reminiscent of a cowboy ready to draw at the slightest movement. Fearing attack from the thing inside the bush, he craned his neck to see what had landed in it. Slowly, a small hand came into view. Puzzled, James moved more easily towards the bush.

Lying in the bush was a boy, no older than James, who was completely knocked out. He was sweating and his muggle clothing was ripped in several places, the skin underneath torn and scratched. His hair held several brambles, twigs, and leaves and poking out of his pocket was a sturdy stick.

James bent down and took up the stick. He examined it and noticed the peculiar shape about it – like a point at one end and a smoothed grip at the other.

"It's a wand…" James said, turning it over. He then reached down to his hip, pressed a small white plate, and several metal plates moved out of the way, opening the side of its hip and allowing access to James's jeans pocket. After storing the wand away, he pressed the button to close the gap in his suit and noticed a red stain on the grass.

James gasped as he realized the boy was bleeding profusely from his ankle. James bent down and looked at the wound, realizing that even if he had his magic powers, he didn't know how to slow the bleeding. He looked and saw the boy was losing color in his face and, reacting quickly, moved over and picked the boy up out of the bush. The feat, though made easier by the suit, was made more difficult by the strange angle at which the boy's extremities were angled. James lugged the boy across the lawn and up to the porch.

"Lily!" James called though the window, "Lily! Come help!"

Within a minute, Lily was at the sliding glass door.

"What do you want, Ja—Bloody hell!" she squealed, sighting the body, "What have you done?!"

"Help me get him inside! He fell into our bushes out of nowhere and he's bleeding like crazy!"

Lily pulled the sliding glass door all the way open and helped carry the boy inside. They laid him down on floor of the kitchen.

"He's losing blood like mad!" Lily exclaimed.

"Grab that step so we can prop his legs up and get the blood rushing to his head!" Lily grabbed a stepstool from the corner and propped it under the boy's legs as James held them up. The bleeding slowed, but was still coming out onto the kitchen floor.

"Oh… Lily," James said, rattling his brain for a way to save the boy, "Isn't there something that mum keeps for these things?!"

Lily thought quickly, "Dad has her keep some essence of Dittany for bad cuts! I'll go and grab it!"

Lily ran off as James latched onto a thought: "Dad…"

James jumped up and ran over to the phone. He quickly punched in the number for his mobile and waited as it rang, jumping up and down with the rush of adrenaline.

"We're sorry, no one is available to take your call…"

James swore loudly then turned and saw his tawny owl flutter inside through the still open sliding glass door.

"Oi! Go peck at dad's fingers till he answers his bloody mobile! Pull the thing from his bloody pocket if you have to!"

The owl hooted and swooped out the door. Lily came running back in with a small bottle in her hands. "Oh, I think this is it, James…" Lily said handing the bottle off to her brother.

James looked down at the bottle's markings, reading the scrawled handwriting on the label. "Yeah, this is it… come help me!"

The children ran over to the unconscious boy and James unstoppered the bottle. He dripped the contents onto the wound in the boy's ankle and the bleeding slowed considerably. A few more drops and it stopped all together.

James and Lily, panting from the ordeal, sighed as they saw a little color return to the boy's face. The kitchen was a mess, a pool of blood running from under the boy's ankle, dribbling all the way out through the open door and across the porch. Bits and pieces of twigs, leaves, and dirt were dropped everywhere, mingling with the blood. James looked down at his hands and realized that blood had stained the elastic bands that made up parts of his gloves. The two children kneeled on either side of the unconscious boy, exceedingly tired.

The phone rang suddenly, making James and Lily jump. James got up and answered it. "Hello?"

"James!" he heard his dad's angry voice on the other end, "Is this some sort of prank, sending your ruddy owl to interrupt me in a meeting to—?!"

"Dad!! You need to come home straight away!!"

Harry noticed the tone of James voice and immediately panicked, "James?! Are you and Lily all right?! What's happened?!"

"It's bloody weird! Some boy dropped out of nowhere into our back yard, bleeding like crazy! The house is a mess – we were trying to fix him up—"

"Where's Ginny?! Is your mother there?!"

"No! She's gone off to Diagon—"

"I'm coming home now! Don't move the boy any further!!"

Harry hung up the phone, sounding truly frightened. James put down the phone and looked at Lily, who was breathing heavily, looking back at James. James swallowed hard and asked, whispering, "Is he still alive?"

Lily looked down at the boy's face and then leaned over to put her head to his chest, her red hair draping over him. She looked up at James and nodded. James went over and kneeled down next to the boy. The boy had brown hair, still intertwined with leaves and brambles. His face was long and he had a vicious scar cut across his right cheek. His skin was pale, but that could have also been from the lack of blood.

"Have you ever seen him before?" James asked quietly.

Lily shook her head. "Do you think he Apparated here?" she asked in return.

James shrugged, "Maybe. Did he get splinched?"

Lily turned her eyes down to see the wounded ankle.

James shook his head, "I have a feeling that's not a splinch."

_CRACK!_

The two children turned to see their father bound inside from the back porch, muttering about lifts. Lily jumped up and ran into his arms, and James was next, jumping up to latch onto him, both of them allowing him to kiss them and smother his face in their hair.

"Oh, thank goodness you're okay…" He said to both of them, kneeling down to hold both of them in his arms. Harry then turned his eyes down at the floor, where the boy laid, unconscious. With a quick examination, he blurted to his children, "Did you give him essence of Ditanny?"

"Yes," both of them responded.

"You propped up his feet," Harry said, coming to the side of the boy, "and how much blood did he lose?"

"A lot," Lily said, tracing the trail of blood on the floor with her eyes.

Harry got up and moved out of the room. He came back minutes later with vial of potion in his hands. He kneeled down next to the boy, propped up his head, and slowly poured the potion into his mouth.

"He'll be fine in a few moments with that Blood-Replenishing Potion," Harry said, "Is he a muggle or a wizard?"

"A wizard," James said and produced the wand from his pocket. Harry took it and looked over it.

"I've never seen a wand like this before… this wasn't made by Ollivander…"

"You mean… there are other wand makers out there?" James asked, appalled.

"Oh, yes, most certainly. You don't expect the whole world to come to Britain to get wands from Ollivander, do you?"

James had never realized that there were more wizards in the world besides those in Britain. Harry continued to examine the wand.

"It is a very sturdy wand. It seems to be made from a wood I don't recognize. I wonder where this boy is from…"

Just then, the boy stirred.

"Ungh…" he groaned and Harry stepped back, startled. The boy slightly opened a single hazel eye and looked about the kitchen. He then opened both eyes, squinting at the roof. "Damn…" he croaked, "where am I?"

Harry moved in closer, "You're lying in the house of Harry Potter in Godric's Hollow, south of Bristol."

"Godric's Hollow?" The boy asked, blinking, "Where's Godric's Hollow, what's Bristol, and who the heck is Harry Potter?"


	15. Life, Death, and Those In Between

_From the Author: This pre-story message is becoming a habit, isn't it? Anyhow, I've gone through the story and fixed a couple things. Ron now says "mental" a bit more, just like how he always says it in the books. And I fixed the magnified voice in chapter 13. It was supposed to be in all caps, but I saw that it didn't transfer. It is now fixed. And now, onto the next chapter. Please don't get mislead by the title like my sister was... :)_

* * *

Chapter 15 – Life, Death, and Those In Between 

"So let me get this straight…" Harry said, leaning back on the couch in the sitting room, watching the American boy nurse his ankle with Alfred Alleiva's Broken Bones and Badly Bruised Banishing Cream, bought new from the store for emergency purposes.

"As if you haven't been trying to 'get this straight' for the past twenty minutes now…" The boy replied, glancing at Harry.

Ginny turned abruptly, her wand in hand, "How dare you insult—"

"It's okay Ginny," Harry said, waving her wand down, "I have been badgering him for quite a bit now. I fancy he wants a bit of a break."

"Fancy…" the boy said sarcastically, "I more than 'fancy' it now…"

Harry grinned at him, thinking him to be sort of an equal on terms of wit, or rather, witty remarks. The silence hung in the room for a moment as the boy applied more cream to his ankle. The boy was sitting across the room from Harry, who sat in his favorite chair. Sitting next to the boy on the couch was James, his suit disengaged, helping the boy with the cream. Lily sat on a seat in between Harry and the American, watching who ever spoke. Ginny came back from the kitchen and sat down next to Lily, wrapping her arm around her daughter's shoulder.

"Alright, Dylan," Harry began, making the boy look up, "you were running from your father, who was trying to shoot you down with a pistol…"

"Nice, chap, isn't he?" James said smiling.

"Actually," the boy named Dylan replied, "I like to think of him more like a drunken old worthless son-of-a-gun than something you put on your lips."

"What?!" Ginny blurted as Harry raised an eyebrow, waiting for another explanation.

Dylan looked between the confused members of the family, "Chap? As in ChapStick?" He said, motioning to his mouth, "You know, stuff you put on your mouth to keep your lips from chapping?"

Harry grinned widely, "Lip balm…"

"Whatever!" Dylan said, throwing his hands into the air, "You British people are so hard to make jokes to!"

Harry looked about at the confused members of his family, knowing that only he was seriously enjoying this. He turned back to Dylan, who put the lid back on the container of cream and wiped his hands on a supplied tea towel (or dish towel, depending on which side of the Atlantic you came from).

"So," Harry continued, "Why was your father after your neck? Was he a little pissed?"

Dylan looked up with a deadly stare, "No… he wasn't… he was doing it for fun." When the family looked alarmed, Dylan added, "Of course he was angry! He was drunk too!"

Harry cracked another grin, "That's what I asked in the first place, was he pissed – drunk?"

Dylan looked at Harry with a look of being blind sighted with a bludger. "Pissed doesn't mean drunk! It means angry!"

"Not over here, it doesn't," Harry said, unable to stop grinning.

Dylan fell back into the couch, looking at Harry with disbelief. "Oh, wipe that smirk off your face! I'm tired of these damned semantics!"

"No your not," Harry said, "You like them too. After all, you made half the jokes."

Dylan tipped his head back and broke into a grin. Chucking, he replied, "All the same… it's starting to get annoying…"

Harry leaned forward and tried to wipe away his smile before continuing, "In all seriousness…"

"Oh, we're getting serious now are we?"

Harry chuckled and continued, "…you said that you're from the states and that you Apparited across to here?"

Dylan sat up and looked Harry in the eye, "How else would you explain me getting here?"

"I don't know! A Portkey or similar?"

"Unless there was a Portkey lying in the woods that lead to your backyard, then I would have to say 'no.'"

"Well you can't have bloody Apparited! You're not even thirteen yet, let alone seventeen!"

"Well I Apparited, blood and all!"

Harry looked puzzled for a moment, then smiled mischievously and said, "Very funny…"

"I thought so," Dylan said with a smirk on his face.

"So, judging by your wand, you are a young wizard in the states. Since you obviously don't attend Hogwarts…"

"Hog-whats?"

"Hogwarts," Harry replied, "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It serves all of Britain, Scotland, and Wales."

"Oh… So there are schools other than Roxford, is there?"

"Roxford?" James asked. Dylan turned in his seat to look at him.

"Yeah, Roxford Central University of Magical Arts and Witchcraft. I think it's a rather weird name actually," Dylan said, turning back to Harry, "the first thing that pops into your head when you say it is 'Arts and Crafts', like the stuff that muggle kids do for fun."

"It's a rather long name," Lily said.

"Well, yours is no better."

"We call our school 'Hogwarts' usually," Ginny said.

"And we call ours 'Roxford', and sometimes 'Roxford U' if we wanna boost the school's rep a little."

"I see," Harry said, "and where is Roxford anyhow?"

Dylan thought for a moment, then, "Somewhere in middle America, out in the plains. It's beautiful out there, you can see for miles in one direction and then in the other we're up against a big mountain. There's some forests off to the side around the hilly zone and over there is where the hot spring is, which siphons off to a really clear stream. It's pretty as heck out there!"

Harry couldn't help but smile as he said, "And how pretty is 'heck' anyway?"

Dylan went from beaming happily to glaring at Harry angrily in a few seconds. "You get my drift, don't you?"

"Tell me where you're drifting to and I'll tell you if I can get you."

Dylan fell sideways onto the couch, rolling his eyes. James laughed raucously as he jumped out of the way of the boy's fall. Harry also couldn't help smiling as well.

"Alright, that's enough," Ginny said, a smile fading from her face.

"Since when did you start breaking up fun?" Harry said, looking at her, still laughing, "I thought that was Hermione's job."

Ginny glared at him as her hand went to her silver charm necklace. "We need to get him home."

"UH uhn!" Dylan said quickly, sitting upright immediately, halting abruptly in his laughing fit. "There's no way I'm going back there! My father will kill me!"

"Literally," James added to the quieted room.

"Well, you can't stay here…" Ginny said. The room suddenly became loud with protest.

"Why not?!" "We can find a place for him to sleep!" "I'm not going back to my parent!"  
"There's no way you're sleeping with Albus, James!" "I can share a bed!" "I can sleep on the couch!" "I'll find a spot outside!"  
"You are not sleeping outside!" "We can make him another room, can't we?!" "Oh, yeah, what will the muggle neighbors think about—"

"QUIET!!!!!"

The room fell silent immediately. Ginny stood in the middle of the room, her wand aloft, sparking menacingly. In her other hand, a Great Owl sat, holding an unrolled letter in its beak.

Ginny looked down at Harry before turning to Dylan. "You," she said, indicating the boy with her wand, "can stay here for _one_ week until we get a few things straight. First," she said, rounding on Harry, "we have a funeral to attend."

"A funeral?" "Who died?" "Who's funeral?" "What are we—?"

This time sparks flew from Ginny's wand, creating a stunning display of miniature fireworks. She was staring at Harry, who knew what had happened the moment it flashed in Ginny's eyes.

"Buckbeak's died," he said quietly.

"Buckbeak?!" Lily exclaimed.

"Died?!" James said, mouth open.

"Who's Buckbeak?" Dylan asked, receiving a glare from Ginny. "What?"

Ginny turned back to Harry, who asked solemnly, "When is it?"

"Tomorrow," Ginny replied, then jerked her head backwards, as if indicating something. Harry looked around her and spotted Dylan staring back.

"What do you think, Ginny?" Harry said, looking at her again.

"He's not staying in our house while we're out," she replied with a definite finality.

Harry thought, then suddenly smiled, "Why not? All we'd have to do is cast _Petrificus Totalus_ on him and stuff him in a closet. He won't be any mind there."

Ginny's face softened into a hint of a smile as the kids protested behind her.

"NO!" James protested from next to a stone-faced Dylan, "He can come with us!"

"Yeah!" Lily added, "He can meet Hagrid and see Hogwarts!"

Harry gave a wink reminiscent of Dumbledore and Ginny smiled. She turned and said, "Actually, I think what your father suggested would be great accommodations for our guest here…"

More protests issued from the two children as the American boy sat in the middle, contemplating with worried look about being unable to move in a broom cupboard somewhere in the house.

"Mum!!" James continued to protest, "That would be no better than his dad!"

"Actually," Dylan said quietly, "It would be if you let me out after you came back."

"Who said anything about letting you out?" Harry said with a grin around his wife.

The children gawked as Dylan, catching the playful look in Harry's eye, smirked at him.

"Very funny, Mr. Potter," Dylan said, "So can I come then?"

"As long as you don't make any fuss," Ginny said, "It is a funeral after all…"

"Don't worry, Molly," Harry said, getting up from the chair, "He won't."

A low "oooh" emanated from the children as Ginny turned to Harry with an expression of humorous shock. "Did you just call me by my mother's name?" she said, looking at Harry with a gaping mouth.

Harry stood with his hands in his pockets, shifting his eyes to look at them with a curious smirk. "What?" He said, looking at his wife with an expression of guilt and ignorance, "Isn't that your name? I thought that was Molly Weasley talking there…"

Ginny wheeled her hand around and grabbed Harry by the ear. She dragged him out of the room, the three children laughing raucously at Harry's worried expression. When she reached the hallway, she pulled him around the corner, out of sight of the door. She stopped and wheeled around, a blazing look on her face.

Harry looked cornered, but with a hint of a smile coming through. He was looking down at her charm, which dangled above her heaving chest, gleaming with an orange tint. "Do you like the charm then?" he whispered.

She looked down at it and then back at Harry. "Beautiful, actually," she breathed heavily, eyeing her husband, "now that I've found it again."

"It was under the tree, wasn't it?"

"Oh, yes," she whispered, "just where I thought I lost it that night."

"That night…" he repeated, looking down at the key charm.

She looked down at it again, then back at Harry, still breathing heavy. "You charmed it last night, didn't you?"

"Possibly…" Harry said, now smiling widely at the now red tint of the charm.

Ginny split into a smile. "Oh, you are _so_ going to get it tonight…"

"That's what I was hoping for…" He said, grinning.

Ginny pushed away from Harry, still looking at him. She then turned and made her way up the stairs with rather heavy footsteps. Harry watched her go and then backed up to the sitting room door and looked inside at the children talking on the couch.

"Bed time, kids," He called.

"But dad!" James whined, "It's only eight!"

"I don't care. By the time you find our guest a bed he can sleep in, it _will_ be bed time. Now get moving!"

The children whined as Harry turned from the room and made his way, rather quickly, up the stairs.

* * *

_From the Author, Again: The last piece wasn't the best thing to do, I'm sure, but it did its job. And for those who are interested, the title does relate to the chapter: Life means Love, Death means the Funeral, and Those In Between means the Children, specifically Dylan. I know, it is a stretch...  
_


	16. Funeral Proceedings

Chapter 16 – Funeral Proceedings

Harry stood quietly next to Ginny out on the frosty grounds in front of Hagrid's hut. Ron stood next to him, his traveling hat in his hands, his red hair blazing atop his head. Hermione stood next to him, crying softly. In front of them, their children stood. Lily stood in front of Ginny, Ginny's hand on her shaking shoulder. Hugo stood at his father's feet, his brown-red hair not nearly as bright as his father's. Rose was in front of her mother, her bushy hair hiding her mother's hand. In fact, if James was there, it would look like the four parents had slightly altered miniatures of themselves standing in front of them.

However, James was not there. He was outside the gates, sitting on a conjured bench, watching his feet and not daring to look at the ruins of Hogwarts. Dylan was next to him, his arm draped over his friend's shoulders, attempting to comfort him. It was he, after all, that cried "Oh, that's Awesome!!" at the sight of Hogwarts and made James break down and cry on the spot, having looked to see the magnificent school and found a ruin just where he had last seen it.

James sniffed. "You can go back to the funeral if you want…" he said shakily, "Albus will be finished with his morning classes soon and you'll be able to meet him."

Dylan looked to the ground and sighed. "I might, in a little bit…"

James smiled slightly, but it soon slipped off his wet face.

Dylan looked down at his own knees, feeling ashamed of causing James to cry.

"It's not your fault," James said, as if he knew what Dylan was thinking, "I would have had to stay out here even if you hadn't come, and that would have made me miserable."

"Yeah…" Dylan said, averting his look to the ground.

"Now go…" James said, refusing to look at Dylan, "Go over to the funeral."

Dylan looked at the back of James's bowed head before retrieving his arm and standing up. He walked away to the gate and looked back at James, who now started crying openly. Dylan entered the grounds, knowing James wanted to be alone.

Dylan straightened his borrowed dress robes now. Being the same size as James and not wanting to look like a fool with his blood-ridden muggle clothing, he had borrowed James's dress robes to wear to the funeral, especially since James wouldn't need to wear them anyway.

Dylan made his way across the grounds, which had frost covering them. It was nearly December now and the frigid air showed it. It was not enough to see your breath in the air and not enough to cause snow to fall, but it was enough to give the grass a white glaze and make car windows tint green. Dylan, who hadn't come to England with any type of warm attire, wore James's light muggle wind breaker under his dress robes. Despite this extra layer though, he rubbed his hands together in an attempt to warm his fingers.

He approached the line of people standing on the edge of the forest, next to a white-tinged garden. Suddenly, he stopped dead, as a massive figure came around the hut. Fear mounted inside him as the massive figure approached the line of people and he was about to shout a warning when Harry looked up and saw him and waved him over. Dylan stood frozen, looking at the ten-foot hairy figure in a huge overcoat.

By now the other adults were looking at Dylan and Harry figured out what he was looking at. "It's okay!" he called, "He's our friend!"

By now the giant figure had also spotted him, but he turned away and joined the line of grievers. Dylan, still startled, moved slowly over to the line. Approaching Harry, he turned and stood in the line, Harry placing a hand on his shoulder to shift him into place. Dylan looked to the garden now and saw the hippogriff, lying on its side, in a most obviously dead position.

Ron had turned his head to Harry and spoke in an undertone, "Couldn't hire a funeral director, could he?"

"Couldn't find one to bury a hippogriff, no, they were all afraid it would bite."

Dylan bowed his head low to hide a snicker as Hermione cleared her throat in annoyance. Even Ginny had to smile a little as she looked upon the creature. They all jumped, however, when Hagrid gave a great blow into his handkerchief the size of a tablecloth; Dylan looked around, frightened, looking for the ship that blew the foghorn.

"Does…" Hermione said to the line of mourners, her voice shaky, "Does any one want to… say a few things?"

Harry looked over to Hermione, looking past Ron. A couple of the children were sobbing quietly. Hermione looked over to Harry, catching his eye. She made a motion with her head, indicating for him to say something. Harry looked at Buckbeak, lying on the ground, and the first thing that he could think of was Sirius. Then the scar across his heart was torn open. Harry drew a quick breath and shook his head silently. Hermione watched as Harry bowed his head and began to sob softly.

"I'd, er, like ter say somethin'." Hagrid said as softly as he could.

Hermione looked up at him as he wiped his shaggy face with the blotchy handkerchief.

"Buckbeak, er, was a good friend," He began, "I ne'er liked another creature better. An' after his son ran off, he was heartbroken an' sick for months. Tha' was when he got sick.

"He had a good long life. He ne'er knew it, bu' Harry, Ron an' Hermione saved 'im from havin' a short one back when they was in school here. I only found out after Harry told me a bit ago. An' Beaky was brave, too, when he took an' hid wit' Sirius in the mountains an' stuff. Sirius took good care o' him, an' when he died, Sirius found a way ter get 'im back where he was happy. An' Harry here… Harry?"

Dylan felt a cold breeze hit his back. He turned to look up at Harry and found him missing. Ginny turned as well to find him gone. The whole line looked back behind them now to find Harry walking off across the ground, marching away from the hut with his head bowed, wiping his eyes with his sleeve.

* * *

Albus walked out the large wooden doors, down past the hill with the white tomb, and across the white glazed lawn to Hagrid's hut, which stood at the edge of the forest. The usually empty property surrounding the hut was occupied by several figures in different cloaks, all of them surrounding the pumpkin patch next to the hut. 

"Where are we going?"

"Just keep coming, you'll see."

Following behind Albus, Rebecca looked at the game keeper's cabin as they approached it. She had never gone down this way before and, frankly, had attempted to avoid it and its oversized occupant. Now she was following Albus down to it.

"Why are we heading over there?"

"Are you afraid or something? Com'on!"

The two kids moved down the slope to the hut. Albus went over to the small crowd gathered around the now buried grave of Buckbeak. Ginny turned to see Albus approaching.

"Al!" She said as he approached, "What took you so long?"

"Spartz," He said, "He kept babbling on about the stupid homework assignment. It was a nightmare."

"He kept you after the bell?"

"He didn't realize the clock had struck. We haven't eaten yet, but we came down anyway."

Ginny looked over Albus's head at Rebecca and they waved at each other. "Well," she continued to Albus, "there's nothing more to see really, you should probably go up to lunch then."

"No, I wanna see James first. Where is he?" Albus asked looking around for him. He stopped and then asked incredulously, "Where's dad?"

"Oh, well, your father got a little emotional and headed off to the lake." She pointed and Albus looked to see a small figure of his father sitting on the lake shore. A few feet away from him, the water broke and a squid's tentacle reached onto shoreline and attempted to pat Harry on the shoulder. Harry swatted the tentacle away without a thought and it retreated into the lake again. Albus looked back at his mother to see a thoroughly amused face on her. She looked down at her son and said with a hint of laughter in her voice, "Your brother should be outside the gates of the grounds. I think Dylan is there with him."

Albus cocked his head, "Who?"

Ginny looked at him and sighed with understanding, "Right, you don't know yet. You'll see who I'm talking about. They'll be just outside the gate on a bench I conjured for him to sit on."

"Right…" Albus said, trying to understand. He turned and led Rebecca away to the gates of the grounds.

Albus spotted him first, sitting on the bench with some other boy in his dress robes. Albus stopped just outside the gates, Rebecca stopping next to him. The boy next to James looked up and saw them.

"James," He said in an American accent (which confused Albus for a second), "Someone's here to see you."

James looked up and saw Albus standing there.

"Hi, Albus…" he said gloomily, "How's Hogwarts?"

"Fine…" Albus replied, wondering why he hadn't jumped up when he saw Rebecca. Albus and Rebecca exchanged glances and then looked at the boy next to James, who also looked puzzled.

"James," the boy said, "There's two people there…"

James looked up again, squinting. "No there's not…" he replied.

Rebecca gasped, and Albus quickly grabbed her arm to keep her from running. "James, no," Albus said to James, "there _is_ someone else here…"

And Albus pulled her forward out of the grounds. James looked up again and immediately lifted from his seat.

"Rebecca!" He cried and he ran over to her and flung his arms around her. She, startled beyond comprehension, stood and let him embrace her, not returning the favor. "Rebecca, I missed you so much…"

Dylan came over to stand, stunned, next to Albus. "James," he asked, "Why didn't you see her before? She was standing right there the entire time…"

James sobbed and put his head down on her shoulder. "Because…" he said through tears, "I'm a muggle…"

Dylan blinked, "You're… what? But that's impossible. Wizard families can't have muggle kids. You sure you're not a Squib?"

"No," Albus replied for him, "It's like this…" And he retold everything that happened, from the biting and the hospital wing, to going home and getting the suit, James interspersing his commentary in between.

"So…" Dylan said to James after the long explanation, "You're actually a wizard kid, but you got your magic sucked out of you? And this strange clone of you is walking around Hogwarts as we speak?"

"That's about it…" Albus said, sitting on the end of the bench.

James jumped up suddenly. "So this copycatting son-of-a-gun is walking around trying to make a mockery of me?" he raged, looking into the Hogwarts grounds and seeing nothing but ruins.

Albus and Rebecca looked at each other. "Son-of-a-gun?" Albus mouthed to her. She shrugged back. Albus turned to James, saying out loud, "Yeah that's about right."

Dylan got up and walked next to James, looking into the grounds. He pointed, "That must be him."

Albus and Rebecca jumped up and looked into the grounds as well. Standing far away from them, under a tree, the mirror-image-James was stopped, simply looking at them, staring at them, from under the tree.

"That's him, alright," Albus said, looking with his hand to his forehead.

Rebecca shuddered, "It's frightening, really, seeing two James Potters. It gives me the creeps."

But James was confused. "He doesn't look like me…"

The three other kids turned to James. "You can see him?!" Albus asked.

"Yeah, but he's not like me at all! He's much taller than me!" James paused, looking into the grounds with his hand shielding the sun from his eyes, "I can't quite make out what he looks like, but he doesn't look at all like me!"

The children looked back at the mirror-James across the grounds. "He's still staring at us…" Dylan said.

"Maybe he sees James and hates how there are two of him right now…" Albus suggested.

James looked away. "Maybe he just hates how a muggle can see right through his little disguise. Anyone have any binoculars?"

"No." "Not really." "Like I brought Binoculars with me…"

"Oh well, I'll just have to find out what he looks like when he comes out here to fight me… Who's going over to tell him that I wanna fight him for position of 'James Potter'? No one? Oh, come on…"


	17. Horseman

_From the Author: I have just completed the story in writing and I will be posting the rest of it up after I have proofread everything (a chapter at a time, obviously)_

_This is a short chapter, so I'll post the next one a little later._

* * *

Chapter 17 – Horseman 

_It's James… But yet, it isn't James… Or is it? … No, it can't be, he was at home…_

This was the fight that was going on in Albus Potter's mind. Back and forth he went, trying to decide what to think. All that he determined, after an hour or so of debate with himself in the back of Transfiguration class, was that this was a very serious joke someone was playing and it was not funny.

It was maybe a few hours after the burial of Buckbeak. Albus was walking along behind James-at-school. James was tagging along behind a third-year Hufflepuff girl and a fifth-year Ravenclaw boy whom he had taken interest in after his other two friends were sadly attacked by something.

Albus was feet behind James, trying to listen in on what he was saying.

"It's sad, what happened to your friends, isn't it James?" the Hufflepuff was saying.

"Huh? Are you talking to me?" James said after a moment's pause.

"Yes, isn't your name James?"

"Uh, yeah, it is…" James seemed a little uncertain.

"Blimey," the Ravenclaw boy said, "Did you get attacked as well? You don't remember your own name?"

"Well," James said, abashed, "I might have…"

The Hufflepuff shook her head. "Well, where are you heading next?"

"What do you mean?" James said.

"_Class_! What _class_ is next?!"

"Oh, um, Divination."

The Ravenclaw boy turned, "Aren't you in second year? Second years don't have Divination!"

"Oh, I, uh, mean Care of Magical Creatures, with Spartz – er – Hagrid!"

The three of them stopped, and Albus slid next to a suit of armor to keep listening.

"Are you sure you haven't been Confunded?" The fifth year boy said, bending down to look in James's eye. James turned away quickly. "Your eyes are a weird color, sort of a mix of blue, green, brown, and red."

"Must be that jinx someone set on me earlier this morning…" James said. Albus knew he was lying, as he had been following him around as much as possible and he knew there would have been a commotion if someone had jinxed him; this James did not take kindly to being bullied.

"A jinx?" the girl said, "what kind? I'll set a counter curse for it."

"I'm not sure, he didn't say anything…"

"Well," the boy said, unnerved, "I thought our sixth and seventh years were better behaved then that…"

"Don't worry, I sorted him right…" James said, still looking away from the boy.

"Well then," the girl said and looked down at her watch, "I had better be off. Class will be starting in a minute."

"Yeah, same here," the boy said, and the two of them walked away in separate directions down the corridor.

James stayed where he was, looking after each of them in turn, staring strangely in either direction. After they were both out of sight, he cursed himself, saying, "Too many different streams of memories to pull from…"

James walked off, Albus following him, determined to find out what James had meant. They walked along for a while, eventually coming to the Atrium. James took a floating stairway down to the ground floor; Albus followed, talking the marble stairs, not wanting to be too obvious. But he had to run to catch up to James, as James had taken a shorter route.

James made it into the Entrance Hall first, Albus almost running into him as he stopped dead.

Albus looked about. He saw, down the couple of stairs that lead back to the Atrium, McGonagall was standing, talking to a creature that was half-horse, half-man. The centaur had white-blonde hair, a palomino body, and blue eyes. He was holding what looked like a bow in his hands and he had a quiver full of arrows on his back. His hooves clopped the stone floor restlessly as he spoke to McGonagall, their voices carrying to Albus's ears.

"…yes, I have spoken to Bane, but he insists that he was not taken. He insists that—"

"And yet he does not have any proof that the Kiss occurred…" McGonagall said.

"Yes, that is true." The centaur replied.

"He has also not seen it wandering about."

"No, but he insists that without any guidance, it will have wandered to the far reaches of Britain."

"It can't have gone that far; it's only a foal after all."

"But he insists."

"He does a lot of insisting doesn't he?"

"But he has the proof of the stars to back him up…"

McGonagall made a noise of annoyance. "Firenze, you know my views on Divination."

"Yes, well…"

The two of them looked up at the steps now and spotted Albus and James at the top. Firenze turned to McGonagall.

"Are those Harry Potter's boys? They look very much like him."

"Oh, yes," McGonagall said, surprised, "They are."

Albus smiled widely and waved as Firenze waved at him. James, though, had an undeniable look of horror on his face. McGonagall waved the centaur over to the stairs and they both approached Albus and James. Firenze had a hoof on the first step when James screamed.

He screamed at the top of his lungs, running backwards, tripping and falling into some approaching students, knocking the books out of their arms. He got up, his arms and legs flailing, and he sprinted down a side hall, turning the bend, determined to put as much distance between himself and the Entrance Hall.

Albus, McGonagall, and Firenze stared.

"Is it something I said?" Firenze said, looking at Albus. McGonagall stared after James, her eyes narrow with suspicion.

"No…" McGonagall said slowly, "I believe… it was something… you are…"

Firenze looked between a suspicious McGonagall and a bewildered Albus, completely bemused himself.

Firenze turned to Albus finally and held out a hand, "Hello, Mr. Potter. I am Firenze. I met your father once when he was a boy your age."

Albus came down the stairs and shook hands, "Hi, My name is Albus. What was it you were talking about?"

"Nosey, aren't you?" McGonagall said, finally turning to look at Albus.

"Well, it's a big, echoy, room," Albus replied.

Firenze smiled solemnly, "One of the tribe's foals has gone missing. It was around the time your bother was bitten. We believe it was—"

"So trusting, are you?" McGonagall said, cutting the centaur off. Firenze looked at McGonagall curiously. "He does not need to know…"

"Aw," Albus said, "But I want to find out more about what happened to my brother!"

McGonagall turned back to look, not at Albus, but down the side hall James had run down. "You will find out, Albus, in due time. But you will only find out…" she turned to look at him, "…only after I have…"

And with that, she walked off, leaving the centaur and the boy to contemplate what she meant.

"So, how's your father doing? Did you know I gave him a ride once…"

"Really? Can I ride?"

"No, I don't think so."


	18. Arms and Ammo

Chapter 18 – Arms and Ammo

"_Wingardium Leviosa_" both Dylan and James screamed together. A ball of heat shot from James's suited hand and hit the rock, making it jump into the air. But Dylan's rock was faster, having bounded into the air the instant he cast the spell. Both rocks were flying now through the makeshift maze the boys had constructed in the yard. Dylan's rock was winning, as it was faster. James's rock kept bumping over the cardboard walls and ripping new paths through the maze.

"Cheater," Dylan said, floating his rock with precision around a hairpin turn.

"Show off," James said, making his rock fly straight towards Dylan's, ignoring the walls it bowled over.

Dylan was concentrating hard, his wand pointing down over the fence of the porch at the maze below. He had reached the exit and it was now a matter of racing around the outer edge of the maze back to start to win. Just as he pulled the rock out of the maze, an irate James reached over and grabbed Dylan's wand out of his hand.

"Hey!" Dylan said, feeling air between his fingers as his rock hit the ground.

James was smiling, intent on getting the rock to the exit now.

Dylan turned back to his rock and stared at it. Drawing from deep inside his gut, he pointed at the rock with his index finger and yelled, "_WINGARDIUM LEVIOSA_" The rock jumped into the air again and began moving around the edge of the maze.

James, stunned, glanced at Dylan, whose eyes were squinted in concentration. Considering that James was holding Dylan's wand in his free hand, it was quite a feat to see.

The rocks raced around the maze now. Dylan's rock reached the starting line again and Dylan let up on the spell, the rock falling to the ground.

"No!" James said, "_Finite!_ How dare you win!" James turned to Dylan. "Dylan?"

Dylan was on the ground, breathing hard as if he had just run up a dozen flights of stairs. He had not fallen over, but was sitting on the ground, his hands holding him up.

James went to his knees next to him. "Dylan, are you okay?!" he asked, worried.

Dylan nodded his head roughly, breathing hard. He turned his head to James and then snatched the wand back from his hands. "Just… don't do that again…"

"I won't, I'm sorry!" James said.

A few minutes later, Dylan was back on his feet and they had both decided it was rather humorous.

"That's no fair, using your hands!" James said, laughing.

"Well you use your hands too!" Dylan replied, also laughing, "Why can't I?"

"I have to! You're not supposed to! You've got a wand at least, and yet you can do magic with your hands!"

"At a cost," Dylan said, the laugh fading significantly, "You saw what I was like after that."

"Yeah, but it was still a really cool trick, something to know to get you out of a tight spot!"

"And how often am I in tight spots?"

"Oh, I don't know, how often do you run into your dad?"

They both laughed. At that moment, Mr. Donavin walked out of his house and into his back yard. He was carrying a large, brightly colored tube. James spotted him first.

"What's Mr. Donavin doing with that?"

Dylan leaned forward to see. "What is that?"

"I donno."

Mr. Donavin kneeled down in the grass and stuck the tube in the ground. He adjusted some wires around it and walked backwards, hunched, away from the tube, laying some more wire down as he went.

"It looks like a firework."

"A what?" James said, rounding on Dylan.

"A firework! You know one of those things you fire into the air and it goes BANG!" Dylan said, illustrating with his hands.

"You mean a fire cracker?" James replied, smiling.

Dylan stared at him, his arms still spread apart from imitating the explosion. "No, that's not what I meant, but if that's what you _British_ people call them…"

James laughed as he got to his feet. He walked off the porch and headed towards the neighbor's yard. Dylan followed shortly after, jogging to catch up. As they approached Mr. Donavin's backyard, he called out to them.

"Oi! Don't get too close!" The boys spotted him waving them over to him. They boys came over and stood next to Mr. Donavin as he set off the firework. It shot into the air and exploded overhead, causing a great shower of red and gold to rain down before disappearing.

"It's like the fourth of July!" Dylan said happily.

"That what?" James replied, "What's so special about July fourth?"

Dylan turned on him with mouth open, "You don't know about the fourth of July?! It's Independence Day!"

"Independence from what?"

Dylan was shocked, "Why from…" He stopped, and then sighed in realization, "Oh, that's right, you're British. Independence from you people!" Dylan said with an accusatory finger pointed at James.

"Hey! What did we do?!"

"You damned British were suppressing us, so we threw tea at you!"

"What?!" James said, confused.

Mr. Donavin chuckled, "That's not quite how it went, but I'm not a historian, so I won't go into details." He picked up another large fire cracker and lugged it over his shoulder.

"You've got more of those?" James asked, looking wide-eyed at the cracker.

"Oh absolutely!" Mr. Donavin replied cheerfully, "And I have other bangers and things as well. Want to see?"

"Sure!" "Alright!"

Mr. Donavin turned and set the firework down again. He opened his back door and lead the boys inside. Turning a bend in the hallway, he lead his way up the stairs and into another room of the house.

Stepping inside the room was like stepping into a military magazine. The boys gasped as shelves and shelves of all sorts of artillery, from ammunition and machine guns, to heavy weapons, bombs, and explosives, came into view. There were shelves for pistols and guns, cabinets for grenades and mines, and chests for spent shell casings of every imaginable kind.

James, who had never seen any of it before, gasped in wonder and amazement. Dylan, who had several times seen the wrong end of a couple of the weapons, gasped in fear and stood back in the doorway.

"This is my stock and collection of ammunition and weapons. I would say that if the British army needed a stockpile to pull from, they could use this stock and supply them for a week in full combat. I'm quite glad it didn't get damaged from the house fire back in August…"

"I didn't know there were so many types of Muggle wands!" James gasped.

"Muggle wands?" Mr. Donavin replied, chuckling, "Is that what you magic folk call these?"

"Why?" Dylan said softly, cowering in the doorway.

"Why what?" Mr. Donavin asked, now noticing Dylan in the doorway, "What's wrong, son?"

"Why do you have all this? What do you plan on doing with it?"

Mr. Donavin turned to James, who answered his unasked question, "He's had a bad experience with his father…"

"He tried to murder me with a couple of these things…" Dylan said loudly.

"I'm sorry, son," Mr. Donavin replied, "I don't use them to kill people. In fact, I study them, examine them, figure out how they work. That suit you're wearing," Mr. Donavin said, pointing to James's deployed suit, "is made to resist many of these weapons. Granted, that is only if you have your helmet on, which I assure you is a good thing to do during combat."

"I put on the helmet when I sneak around places," James replied.

"So I've heard…" Mr. Donavin said, eyeing him, "Your father's informed me that you make great use of the invisibility feature. I may have to disable that…"

"No way!" James said, reaching around to his back where he attempted to cover the upgrade slot.

Mr. Donavin smiled, "I'm only pulling your leg, though your father may not be. Here, I have another upgrade for you."

Dylan watched curiously as James turned around and let Mr. Donavin open a plate on his back. Mr. Donavin pulled a card out of his pocket and stuck it into the upgrade slot. Lights blinked on the front of the suit and then an electronic DING sounded.

"Updated in this suit now," Mr. Donavin said, pulling out the card, "is the addition of the gouging charm, _Defodio_, and a fix of that awful mess up in the _Incendio_ spell that causes your hand to catch fire instead of the target."

"Thanks," James said, "I still liked it though; it was one way to roast a marshmallow…"

Downstairs, the back door could be heard opening.

"Mr. Donavin?!" Harry's voice could be heard from below, "Mr. Donavin, have you seen my kids?!" His voice sounded worried.

"We're up here dad!" James called.

There were loud footsteps running up the stairs and Harry appeared at the top. He ran over to the door, Dylan backing out of the way.

"Oh, thank goodness…" He said, exasperated, and then went suddenly stern, "You should not run off like that, young man! Do you know how worried I was when I looked out the window and found you suddenly missing?!"

"Sorry…" James said, taken aback, "What are you worried about? It's not like the Death Eaters have come back!"

Harry's voice dropped to a low growl, "Don't you joke about them, James. You have no idea what they were like. I will not have you make jokes about them."

"Sorry…" James said, this time frightened by the deadly look his father gave him.

"Now I want both of you back outside in our backyard _now_…"

"Okay…" both James and Dylan said, and they sulked out of the room and down the stairs. Harry stared after them, still standing in the doorway. Mr. Donavin had a highly amused look on his face.

"So," he said to Harry, "you've adopted the other boy as your own, have you?"

Harry turned back to look at Mr. Donavin, a piece of the deadly look still on his face. "He lives in my house, he _at least_ should follow my rules."

"No complaints," Mr. Donavin said, holding up his hands, "After all, it seems the rest of your family has taken an immense liking of him."

"Yes, the kids like him, my wife is coming over, my godson has already included him in some of his antics…" Harry smiled, "Yes, the family enjoys his company, but if he stays much longer, I'm going to have to magically enlarge some rooms. Albus will be coming home soon for Christmas and Dylan's been sleeping in his room…"

Harry seemed to fall off into his own thoughts. Mr. Donavin took a machine gun from nearby and leaned against it like a cane. He smiled at Harry before saying, "Why are you so worried?"

"Excuse me?" Harry said, confused at the sudden question.

"James," Mr. Donavin said, and said no more.

"Oh, well…" Harry looked about the crowded room and found a crate on which to sit. He got comfortable on it before leaning forward and continuing, "I'm worried about James because I recently got a letter from the Hogwarts Headmistress."

"Is he doing something bad in school? After all, he hasn't been there since September."

"But, in a way, he has."

Mr. Donavin was confused for only about a second before saying, "Obviously another wizard magic trick?"

"Yes, but not anything on our part. We believe it is foul play."

"Do tell."

And Harry explained the situation about James, from him appearing again at school to all the suspected mischief surrounding him.

"I see," was Mr. Donavin's singular reply.

"And I recently got a letter from McGonagall saying that James-at-school was spotted heading off into the forbidden forest many times this past week. She has also told me that Madam Rosmerta, the bar tender down in the nearby wizarding village of Hogsmade, has spotted him in her bar once."

"Buying Root Beer, no doubt?"

"Well," Harry said, feeling a need to correct him, "It's Butterbeer in our world."

"Same difference," Mr. Donavin replied, smiling at Harry.

"And, actually, no," Harry continued, "He supposedly did not buy anything. Madam Rosmerta saw him come in and head for the restroom. But she did not see him leave."

Mr. Donavin grinned, "Really? Escaped through the loo window, did he?"

"McGonagall went down herself and asked the bartender about the boy. Obviously, it is strange to see a boy in school robes in Hogsmade during the week, so Madam Rosmerta kept an eye on him. According to McGonagall, while she was there, another man who was constantly in the bar told her that she saw one of his mates leave twice."

"Really?"

"Rosmerta passed the witness off as a drunk, but McGonagall seemed keen enough to tell me."

"I'm not sure I like pieces of your magic…" Mr. Donavin said, standing upright.

"It is strange, even for the wizarding world."

"Yes, but even pieces that aren't strange… The other day, I just learned about _Avada Kedavra_."

Harry convulsed nervously. "Don't remind me…"

Mr. Donavin seemed not to hear, "This… was a killing curse… And I thought you wizards were a peaceful lot."

"We are, for the most part," Harry said, reaching up and touching his scar, "But that bit you learned about is Dark Magic. They put that one under the title of 'the Unforgivable Curses' along with a torture curse and a mind control curse."

"Unforgivable, yes…" Mr. Donavin said, "You see, since it was magic, I felt the need to add it to the MagiSuit…" Harry eyed the old man, but he didn't seem to notice, "…but when I went and added it to my computer model of the suit…the computer model seemed to malfunction… and the simulation program crashed. I think I might know what caused the crash, and I'll be seeing if I can fix it… What makes the curse 'unforvigable' anyhow?"

Harry snapped his eyes away from the man when he looked up. "It… well… the killing curse… it… when you cast it... it... it splits your soul…"

"Really?" the old man said, sounding intrigued.

"It is, after all, a violation of nature to kill someone… and to do it so quickly and suddenly… and without them able to defend themselves…"

"I see…" Mr. Donavin said, and then asked the inevitable question: "And has anyone ever survived the killing curse?"

Silence. Then,

"No," Harry replied, "No one has…"

"I see…"

Harry moved suddenly, getting up from crate. "If you'll excuse me, Mr. Donavin, I need to get back to my house."

"Oh," the man replied, approaching him, "I'm sorry, did I—?"

"No, it's nothing, I just need to leave. Thanks for listening, I need to be off." And with that, Harry left the room of arms and ammo, leaving Mr. Donavin staring at an empty doorframe.


	19. The Meeting of Sides

Chapter 19 – The Meeting of Sides

McGonagall sat in her office, behind her desk, doing very important paperwork.

"Does anyone know what a 'goat's healing stone' would be?" She asked the general air of the office, her quill hovering over the crossword on the back of _Witch Weekly_.

"Well obviously," a snide Professor Snape replied from his portrait near the cabinet, "It is a Bezoar. It comes from the belly of a goat and can be used to cure most poisons."

"Of course," McGonagall said as she penned in the answer. "Thank you, Severus."

"You are quite welcome," Snape replied, his voice heavy with irony, "After all, we are always here to help the current headmaster in any way we can."

The other portraits snickered as McGonagall looked around to glower at Snape. "Remind me why you're up on this wall again, Severus?"

"I was a Hogwarts Headmaster at one point," Snape replied with an abrupt smile, "During which, I might add, I tried to run the school as safely as possible, given the conditions."

"That's right," McGonagall said, "you tried to run away at one point when Voldemort was closing in, didn't you?"

Snape has shuddered with the name. "Don't you call me a coward, headmistress…"

"I'm not," McGonagall said, fully facing Snape with an elbow on her desk, "I was merely pointing out an odd occurrence during your regime."

Snape's eyes narrowed menacingly when there was a knock at the front door. McGonagall brusquely slipped the magazine off of her desk and into a drawer while calling, "Enter!"

All the portraits around the room were now snoozing soundly as the door to the office opened. James Potter entered the room, closing the door softly behind him.

"James," McGonagall said, inclining her head.

There was a short delay before James realized that no one else with the name of James was in the room. He looked upon McGonagall.

"You're late," She said, to which he averted his eyes to the steps in front of her desk.

"I'm sorry, Professor, but I wasn't sure where your office was…"

"You know now, don't you?"

"Yes…"

"Well, come sit down then."

He walked up to the desk, looking around at the portraits of sleeping headmasters. His gaze paused at a few of them here and there, as if trying to take in their appearance more thoroughly.

"Now, James," she said, to which he spun about and looked at her, "I called you here to ask you a few questions about your behavior recently."

"M-M-My behavior?" he stuttered, lowering into the chair in front of the desk.

"Yes," she said, acting as though she did not hear him stutter, "I am concerned about your safety. I have seen you slip into the forbidden forest almost every night. You do know why we call it the _forbidden_ forest, right?"

"A-a-a-absolutely," he replied, "I was just… you see… doing some extra research. I got permission to go in there by Professor Vector."

"Really?" McGonagall said, her eyebrows lost to her forehead, "I was under the impression that Professor Vector taught Arithmancy, not Forest Studies or Care of Magical Creatures."

"D-D-Did I say Vector? I meant Hagrid… for Care of Magical Creatures."

"I see," McGonagall said. She then turned to a pile of parchment on her desk and flipped through them, saying, "I can see how you get the names Vector and Hagrid mixed up, as they are so close…"

She glanced covertly at James for his reaction. As any other student caught in a lie would have sweat on their brow and be breathing nervously, James looked almost calm, staring now at another portrait on the wall.

"And did you say you go in there for extra research, extra studies?" McGonagall asked, not looking up from the stack of parchment she was thumbing through.

"Yes, Professor."

"I see…" she said, and finally pulled out a piece of parchment. "Now, about the attacks that happened…"

"Which attacks?"

She looked over her spectacles at him in a curious way.

He immediately backtracked, "Oh… uh… the attacks… of the… couple kids, yeah. I… uh…"

"Surely you remember their names?" McGonagall said, looking into James's strange, multi-colored eyes, "They were, after all, your friends…"

James averted his gaze quickly to the Portrait of Snape, who was sleeping easily in an upright position. "Of… Of course… They were… A… Ashely and… James."

James looked back at McGonagall hopefully, who stared at him blankly for a moment before bending over her parchment and writing something on it.

"I see…" She said as she finished, making James fidget, "And can you tell me what happened during the attack, since you were there after all?"

"I can't, Professor," James replied readily, "the attacker modified my memory and I can't remember a thing about it."

"Except, of course, that the attacker modified your memory?"

"Yeah."

McGonagall stared again, causing James to look away in the direction of another portrait, scratching his neck nervously.

"Well," McGonagall said, snapping out of her stare, "I am sorry to inform you that I will have to tell your father about this."

"My father?" James asked seriously.

McGonagall looked up at him again, "Yes, Harry Potter? Your father?"

"Is he a powerful wizard?"

McGonagall eyed him suspiciously, "Most definitely," she replied as if it were normal to ask about your own upbringing, "After all, he is the one who defeated Voldemort, the most powerful wizard in the world, several years ago."

James inclined his head hopefully. "Is Voldemort still alive?"

McGonagall blinked. She did not look, but she swore that she heard quite a few portraits choke on their own drool, and a few more audibly reply, "What?!"

James did not seem to hear them, as he was seriously staring at McGonagall, waiting for a reply.

McGonagall blinked a couple more times before asking blatantly, "Mr. Potter, have you been _Confunded_?!"

James seemed a little taken aback, still staring at McGonagall. Flustered, McGonagall turned and stood from her chair, walking over to the cabinet and banging on it with her fist. She breathed a moment before turning back to look at James.

"Mr. Potter, I must ask you, what happened in the forest after you were attacked by the creature? Did some poison go to your head or did it just sap you of your common sense? Mr. Potter!? Mr. Potter, _Answer _Me!"

But James was not turned to look at McGonagall. He was staring, quite strangely, at something behind McGonagall's chair. McGonagall twitched in annoyance before moving closer to him.

"James Potter," she called, but he continued to stare. She turned and saw that he was staring at the portrait of Dumbledore, snoozing in his frame. She looked back at James, reading his face, finding a hungry look in it. She turned back to Dumbledore's portrait, looking to see if he had any thing edible in his frame, but found nothing.

James was now muttering to himself, his eyes lowered to the plaque on the bottom of Dumbledore's frame. "Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore. Hogwarts Headmaster 1954 – 1996. Born in 1840 Died… _Died_…"

James had a sudden look of disheartenment on his face, as if a broomstick he longed to have for years was suddenly sold out and discontinued.

"James," McGonagall snapped softly, but James did not respond, "_James_," she said louder and then, "JAMES!!"

James jumped and turned to look at McGonagall.

"Sorry, Professor, were you saying something?"

She came over and sat down at her desk once more. Pulling her wand from her pocket, she said, "Look into my eyes…"

James took one glance at her beady eyes before turning away.

McGonagall, still breathing heavily, replaced her wand and in her pocket and said calmly, "Thank you, you are dismissed."

James got up and left the room slowly, pulling the door closed softly behind him. The office was quiet; not a portrait snored nor an instrument tinkled. Everything was quiet.

McGonagall stood and turned around to face the bright blue eyes of Albus Dumbledore.

"Well," Dumbledore said plainly, breaking the silence, "We should refer the young lad to Professor Binns. He seems rather interested in wizarding history, didn't he?"

McGonagall was staring at Dumbledore's plaque as she said, slowly and thoughtfully, "No………he didn't……"

And with that, she turned from Dumbledore's smiling face, walked swiftly over to the cabinet, and delved deep into the Pensive.


	20. From Heart and Soul

_From the Author: Can I get a review-like shout out from someone out there so I know your ALIVE?! All the same, the story will be completely posted soon. Enjoy this next important chapter!_

* * *

Chapter 20 – From Heart and Soul

"Well, Come'on now, let's see some of that magic!"

"Just because I start an earlier than you at my school doesn't mean I know more!"

James and Dylan were in the sitting room, arguing over the amount of magic that they were capable of.

"Oh come on, now," James said, "a whole extra year is plenty more time to learn some extra stuff!"

"But I told you, I was held back…" Dylan said quietly.

"Just because your parents kept your from going this year doesn't mean you don't know anything! I only went for less than a month before I had to come home."

"All the same, since they have eight grades at my school they spread out what we learn there."

"Oh, quit making excuses!" James said getting up from his dad's chair. He walked around the coffee table and grabbed Dylan's arm, pulling the reluctant boy to his feet. "You are the best child wizard I've ever seen! Com'on! You Apparated!"

"It wasn't a very good experience," Dylan said moodily, "In case you forgot, I was bleeding a lot!"

"All the same! What's more advanced that Apparating?!"

"The Patronus spell…" Dylan said, remembering reading about it somewhere.

"Then let's see if you can do that! What's the incantation?"

"I don't remember…"

"It's _Expecto Patronum_, boys."

The boys turned to see Harry leaning in the kitchen doorframe, his arms crossed, watching Dylan with an amused glint in his eye.

James was taken aback, "Dad! I…"

"Go on, then," Harry said, "Let's see how well you can do it."

James and Dylan looked at each other. Harry fully expected Dylan to wave his wand for hours on end, yelling the incantation, trying to get a patronus out. Harry wasn't about to tell him that he needed a happy thought to make it work.

Dylan looked to Harry again. He smiled and then turned away from both of them, holding his wand aloft.

"Ex… _Expecto Patronum_!"

Dylan gave the wand a furious shake and out of the end of it a great blue translucent four-legged animal clawed its way out into the air. It died shortly after, vanishing into a blue cloud.

"Bloody Hell!"

The boys turned sharply, just in time to see Harry almost fall sideways. He caught himself using the doorframe and stood upright.

"How the hell did you get a bloody patronus out of your wand?!" Harry shouted, immensely shocked, "Especially one so bloody clear?!"

"Why?" Dylan said, shocked at his reaction, "Was I not supposed to?!"

"No! It's really advanced magic! That's all!"

James looked sideways at Dylan and elbowed him in the ribs a little. "See? Even my dad says so."

Dylan cracked a smile and then said to Harry, "And besides, my patronus was not bloody! It just didn't live long that's all!"

James and Dylan cracked up as Harry sighed a calming breath. He had to know, so he asked.

"So, what was your happy thought?"

"My what?" Dylan said through a half-laugh.

"Your happy thought? Patronuses only live when you think of a happy thought first and then cast the spell."

"Oh…" Dylan said, thinking, "Well, I thought of you."

"Me?" Harry replied, startled.

"Yeah," Dylan said as he broke into a smile, "You and your family took me in when I needed it and you treat me better than my real family would have. I can't thank you enough."

"Aww!" James said, flinging his arm around Dylan, "Thanks bud." He playfully punched Dylan in the gut and Dylan flung James's arm off him and playfully punched him back.

"Cute," Harry said curtly, and the boys looked up to see a smirk on his face, "Now, James, Dylan, I need to be off somewhere. I want you boys in bed by nine." Harry looked out the dark front window. "Your mother should be back any time now from her meeting. I don't want you to cause her any trouble. Okay?"

"Alright," both boys said.

"I may not get back till late, so be good and don't blow up the house…"

"Okay dad!" James said, exasperated "Bye!"

Harry shook his head and exited to the kitchen. He went to the kitchen fireplace and took some Floo Powder from the jar on the mantle. Throwing it into the fireplace, the green flames shot high into the air. He stepped into the fire and yelled, "Malfoy Manor!"

The green flames engulfed him.

* * *

Harry stepped out of the green fire and onto the hearthrug. He dusted himself off and spotted Draco Malfoy coming over to him.

"My rug!" Draco said, gesturing at the hearthrug, "My beautiful cashmere rug! You're getting soot all over it!"

Harry looked up at him, continuing to dust himself off. "Isn't that what a hearthrug's for?"

"No!" Draco said, standing beside the rug and himself, "It's for sitting on and looking nice! It's not some welcome mat!"

"Draco," Harry said, looking him in the eye, "You _are_ in the wizarding world, right?"

Draco half-smiled, half-sneered at him before shaking firmly with Harry. Harry turned to clear up the mess when Draco stopped him.

"Don't bother," Draco said in a serious tone.

"You mean to tell me that you made all that fuss and you don't want me to sweep it up?!"

Draco gave the rug a disgusted glance. "It was my father's" he said in a tone that could make a child run and hide, "And I was thinking about getting rid of it anyway."

"I see," Harry said, taking a step away from Draco at the sight of his face. Harry knew that Draco hated his father now. He wasn't sure how excatly it happened, as Draco never went into full detail about it, but something that happened shortly after Voldemort fell. Lucius was apparently glad to have his son safe and back with him after the Battle of Hogwarts, but could never forgive him for not returning to the Dark Lord before the battle. Supposedly, the battling about this minor fact went on for weeks after, flowering and blooming into full fledged hatred between the two.

And, from what Draco told Harry, the straw that broke the hippogriff's back was when Lucious saw Draco and Harry give a friendly handshake to each other. Lucius marched right over to Draco and back handed him across the face, knocking him down only to be caught by Harry. Harry was attempting to get Draco back on his feet as Lucius declared that he was disinheriting Draco. Narsissa had a right fit about it right there, but could not come to Draco's aid in that situation. Harry and Draco were nineteen at the time.

Harry's mind wandered back to the present as Draco turned to look at Harry.

"He still thought that Voldemort might rise again," Draco said, knowing what Harry was remembering.

Harry turned to look at the drawing room. The chandelier was fixed now, but there were still holes and stains in the floor from when it happened, those nineteen years ago. Harry stepped back to look at the floor beneath him. Was this where Hermione was tortured?

"Draco?" Harry said, looking up at him, "How did you acquire the Malfoy Manor?"

Draco smirked, "Funny story actually. My father decided to sell the house. He was apparently going to move far away to somewhere I wouldn't know to look, so I couldn't come back and bother him. It just so happens, that when he went down to see this new house – which was in the tropics – he stayed down there for one night. It just so happened that that was a night when a hungry Lethifold was lurking nearby."

"Ouch," Harry said, recoiling slightly at Draco's rather mild face.

"Mother was in a right state when he never came home the following night. The next night, she invited me over to the house. She told me the news and also told me that my father forgot to change his will before he died. Everything was left to me.

"Well, as you might know, I didn't have a house, so why not?"

"Well, you were rooming with me for a while!" Harry said, "When we went off to Romania that summer!"

"Yes, I know. I didn't know if I wanted to live within these walls. I decided to eventually, especially after my mother went ill." Draco turned and added, "She's upstairs right now. Past her bed time."

Harry and Draco shared a small laugh. At that moment, the green fire sprung up from the fireplace and the figure of McGonagall spun into it. She slowed to a stop and stepped out of it, the soot dropping onto the Hearthrug.

"My Rug!" Draco cried again as Harry laughed.

"Mr. Malfoy," McGonagall said sternly, "I'll buy you a new one if you are so in love with this one. Did it ever occur to you to maybe move it to somewhere where it won't get soot on it?"

"It did occur to me," Draco said, bending to examine the now blackened rug, "But that would defeat the purpose of having it here."

"I see…" McGonagall said before turning to Harry. "Harry, I did not expect to see you here."

"Draco called me here as well," Harry replied as Draco stood.

"Yes," Draco said, "What I want to show you, Professor, concerns Harry as well. Midna!"

With a _CRACK_, a short, dark gray house elf appeared. It had large round eyes and its ears were rater short. It wore a tea towel as a skirt and had what appeared to be an apron over that. It looked in quite good condition, compared to Kreacher, who had died a year's time ago. The house elf bowed low to Malfoy. "What is it my master wishes?" it squeaked, looking up at him.

"Clean up the hearthrug. I have guests to attend to," Draco said. Harry covertly elbowed him, and gripping his side, he added, "Please?"

"Most certainly, master." The elf squeaked back and then turned and hovered the hearthrug into the air. It then walked out of the room, the hearthrug following behind it.

Malfoy had turned back to Harry. "Are you telling me how to treat my house elves again?" he said with a bit of malice.

"Yes," Harry said plainly, "if you don't treat your elves nicely, then they might turn on you. Think of it this way," Harry said, gripping Draco's shoulder and turning him to look at the center of the drawing room. "See that chandelier up there? Remember how it came down when we were here, and by a house-elf's hands? Well imagine that you, or worse, your son Scorpius was under that chandelier." Harry turned to look at Malfoy's fear stricken face.

"Midna wouldn't do that to me!" Draco said, still fearful, "That's against house elf code!"

"It might be," McGonagall said unexpectedly from behind them, "But if you treat them like scum, they will make amends for doing such a thing."

"Look at Dobby," Harry began when Draco moaned.

"Don't remind me…"

Harry continued as if he hadn't heard, "Dobby kept coming to me to protect me from your family's buddy, Voldemort. Every time he did something that you didn't want him to do, he punished himself, but kept doing it."

"Yeah… And that could happen to me?"

"Not if you don't treat them like scum!" Harry replied, "They have feelings too."

Draco sighed, thinking. McGonagall approached them.

"Now, if you don't mind, Mr. Malfoy," she said suggestively, "you have guests to attend to, some of whom run a school that needs their attention constantly…"

"Oh! Right! This way!" Draco said before turning and leading them out a back door, into the extensive grounds.

* * *

The night air was cool and refreshing. A little breeze rustled the magically tended grass and shook the perfectly groomed trees. The three figures, Draco in the lead, Harry in the middle, and McGonagall bringing up the rear, exited the large house and walked across the large stone back porch, which was decked out in fine silk couches and fancy glass tables – and considering that those pieces of furniture were magically protected from the weather, why not?

They came off of the vast stone porch and down a grassy slope. A couple albino peacocks trotted away from them as they approached.

"A fine garden you have here," Harry said, impressed.

"Oh, it's disgusting," Draco replied, "My father was such a prat!"

Draco continued to lead them away from the house as Harry looked back and gave McGonagall an amused look. They came over a second hill and around a few tall pine trees to see a grand round fountain. The fountain was twenty feet across and had tiers that were ten feet high. Water shot into the air and came down in great arcs. Dancing between the arcs of water were brightly colored fairies and shining from inside the fountain were bright blue, pink, yellow, and green lights, casting an almost dreamlike quality to it and lighting up the night.

As they approached the fountain, they spotted something else, something that added to the experience of the fountain but at the same time, interrupted and took away from the experience.

"A… A centaur?" Harry asked curiously as they entered the aura of the fountain.

"Yes," Draco said sadly, "and it is a young one as well."

Harry and McGonagall approached the beast. It was indeed a foal. Its legs were skinny, its body was spotted, and its human section still had a boyish quality to it. If it stood up, its head would only reach Harry's chest. But it was sitting next to the fountain's edge, its legs bent inward, and it was leaning over on the edge, looking at fountain. But something was missing, something vital, something Harry couldn't put his finger on.

"What's wrong with it?" Harry asked, looking at Draco.

"I don't know," Draco said sadly, "It's… it's strange."

McGonagall had gone up to it and sat down on the edge next to where it was leaning. It had not looked up, not even acknowledged that she was there.

Draco continued, "I found it here, in this same spot, leaning in this same manner, a few weeks ago. I don't pass this fountain that often, so it could have been here for weeks beforehand. Roseanne and I were strolling through the grounds when she spotted it."

McGonagall was staring at the colt, examining it behind her spectacles. Harry turned to Draco again, "Does he do anything?"

"Oh, yes," Draco said, "but not much. He gets up to drink from the fountain or to eat some herbs or meat from the forest, or to go use the forest as a chamber pot… but that was after I told him to do that. Before he went where he stood…"

"What do you mean, 'told him to'?" McGonagall said, not breaking her gaze from the disinterested centaur.

"Well…" Malfoy said, hesitating slightly, "it obeys what I tell it to, and with out question."

Harry turned, "Explain."

"Well, after I found it, it was trying to eat some of my grass here. I told it to eat stuff in the forest over there. And it got up and went over to the forest with out a word or protest and found stuff in the forest to eat."

Harry stared, amazed, at the young colt.

"And then, when I told it that it could eat from a pile of tall grasses I gave it, it did so without question. And…" Draco hesitated and then said, quieter, "And then, just trying, I told it to come and help move some fallen trees from near by, and it didn't even question me at all!"

"You told it to do work?!" Harry said, not surprised in the least.

"Well…" Draco stuttered.

"And it obeyed?" McGonagall said, surprisingly unsurprised.

"Yeah," Draco replied, shuffling his feet and averting his eyes to a couple faries.

"This is it…" McGonagall said to herself.

"This it what?"

McGonagall placed a hand on the colt's bare shoulder and said to it, "Stand up." The colt lifted itself off of the edge of the fountain and clopped its way to a standing position, moving no further and saying nothing. McGonagall pulled her wand out of her pocket and said to it, "Look into my eyes." The young boy's head turned to stare at McGonagall.

And her wand dropped.

"Professor?!" Both Harry and Draco called, stepping forward, ready to help the teacher.

But McGonagall did not fall. She merely gasped and snapped her head away from the centaur's eyes.

"Professor?" Harry called to her, "Are you alright?"

She looked at him, a grimace of sickening disgust on her face. Her voice shook with putrid hatred when she spoke, "Crouch."

"What?!" Draco asked, crouching down and looking behind him.

"Barty Crouch, Jr." She replied.

Harry cocked his head to the side, as Draco panicked. "What's happened to her, Harry?" Draco said, turning to grab Harry's arm by both hands, "Has she gone mental?!"

"No, Mr. Malfoy," McGonagall replied, "I am perfectly fine." She bent to pick up her wand, "I am just horribly disgusted."

"Wait a moment," Harry said, "Barty Crouch Jr.? Isn't he… dead?"

"No," McGonagall replied with a heavy sigh, "Unless he died sometime between now and when he was Kissed."

"Oh," Harry gasped, "that's right! He was Kissed by a Dementor!"

"That's right, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said, shuddering, "and in front of me… he was worse than dead. He had his soul sucked out of him..."

Harry shuddered as Malfoy asked, "But why bring him up now?"

McGonagall looked into Malfoy's face with dire misery. "Look into his eyes," she said, pulling the young colt forward by the arm.

Harry looked into its blue eyes. Past the iris, past the retinas, deep into the dark wells of its eyes, Harry looked. And where he would usually see the shimmer of life, the glimmer of personality, and the glistening of intelligence, he found nothing, nothing but black, nothing but a body that needs, a heart that pumps, a mind that knows nothing but the basics of life.

Harry shuddered. "His soul," he said, "it's… it's…"

"gone," McGonagall finished.

Draco shuttered at the thought, "It's been Kissed?"

"Yes," McGonagall said matter-of-factly, though not without remorse, "this poor young creature has had his soul taken from him – no doubt by a needy Dementor." McGonagall licked her lips and then turned her head to the fountain. "Do you know why it is drawn to your fountain, Mr. Malfoy?"

"No… I don't," he said quietly.

"Because," McGonagall began, pointing at the fountain, "a fountain of this type is a special one, indeed. The water cascading down it gives the soulless body something to drink, as well as gives it something to cleanse its empty shell. The lights give it peace of mind, but remind it of the paradise it lost. And the fairies, those beautiful creatures. They remind it of what it was like to have a soul, to be alive, and it hopes that one of the fairies will find a home in it, give it some life to live…"

A hushed silence followed, the water cascading down the fountain, crashing into the pool; the fairies giggled, spun and twirled, playing chase with the arcs of water; the lights shimmered, sparkled, lit up the faces of the three wizards, and the face of the centaur, whose mouth hung open slightly, staring longingly at the fountain, hoping beyond hope about exactly as McGonagall said.

Harry swallowed before speaking in a horse voice. "That was beautiful professor…"

"No," McGonagall said briskly, "that was fact." She let go of the young colt and it returned to its spot along the edge of the circular fountain, sitting again on its legs and leaning on the fountain. McGonagall watched it do this sadly before turning to Draco.

"Mr. Malfoy? May I use your fireplace again?"

Draco, startled, did a sort of shake-nod with his head. "Ye…yeah, sure."

And with that, McGonagall turned and walked swiftly away from the fountain, up the hill, and back towards the house, leaving Harry and Malfoy to stare sadly at the colt.


	21. One Last Kiss

_From the Author: Ah yes, a bittersweet Christmas coming up... Here's where the story peaks on the edge of the climax._

* * *

Chapter 21 – One Last Kiss

Holiday cheer filled the corridors and classrooms of Hogwarts. Dressings of holly were lining the hallways, Christmas trees had been set up in the Great Hall, and the Atrium Clock was decked out in its finest tinsel and pine garland. The floating stairways had wreaths hanging from their rails and fires school-wide were lit against the coming cold.

The only thing that was strange this particular coming holiday was the lack of snow they had received. Though it was still a couple weeks before Christmas, and classes were still in session, snow usually covered the grounds long before the students left. But the snow had held out this year, and not a single flake had fallen.

Instead, it rained. The rain came in sheets across the grounds, trying its hardest to dampen the Christmas cheer. The rain pounded hard on the roofs of the school and sweeped across the lake, giving the local squid the impression that the lake had risen into the air.

James was looking out of the window, looking out onto the lake shore, where the squid was lounging about, waving its long tentacles at the school, greeting the watching children. James sat there, on the window sill, staring out at the lively beast.

It was several minutes before he realized that someone had joined him, also watching the squid through the rain. James looked up when he realized the boy sitting next to him.

It was a first year, short and skinny, his mousy hair short over his light brown eyes. He was smiling out at the squid, waiting for the squid to turn his way and wave at him so he could wave back. He caught James's eye and turned to him.

"Ready for the Holidays?" he asked, his high pitched, energetic voice causing James to jump.

James shrugged indifferently, staring at the small boy.

"No? I'm ready to go! I can't wait to tell me mum about Hogwarts! It's neato!"

James scoffed, "Neato?"

"Yeah! Me mum will be so fascinated by all this and all I learned!"

James was still staring at the bouncing boy, a hint of annoyance in his face.

"I learned all sorts of things here! I can't wait to leave! But I still got a couple classes to go to… such a bummer…"

James raised his eye brows. "Bummer?" he said, watching as the boy's energy seemed to fail him and he returned to watching the lazy squid. James, meanwhile, seemed to have an internal conflict with himself, watching the boy.

The boy suddenly jumped up and said, "Could you help me?"

"What?!" James said loudly, recoiling from the sudden approach.

"Could you help me? I have a test coming up tomorrow and I wondered if you knew some charms, since you're older and stuff…"

"Where?" James said after a minute.

"In the classroom over here!" The boy said, jumping up from the window sill and sprinting to a nearby classroom. James got up and followed slowly after him, entering the classroom cautiously. It was empty.

James looked about the deserted classroom as the boy bounded over to a nearby desk, where he produced several pieces of parchment and quills out of his pocket.

"You see," the boy began, "I was not certain if I can do the charms practical all that well and I don't even know the spells all that well yet…"

James, closing the door behind him, walked over to stand next to the boy, looking on his paper. Scribbled all over the paper were several lines of text in chicken scratch handwriting. James squinted to look at it.

"You see," the boy said, pointing at one particular line, "I learned how to do the levitating spell, but I could never get it quite right… and then this spell I don't even know the name of…"

James had taken out his wand. He waved it behind his back and something like a _squelch_ could be heard from the door behind them.

"_What_ was _that_?" the boy said, turning to look behind him.

"Sorry…" James replied. The boy jumped away from him.

"EEEWWW!!!" the boy said, laughing raucously, "You farted!"

James couldn't help but smile slightly, and that was enough to confirm the boy's suspicions. James waved his wand and then told the boy, "It's okay, I cleared it."

The boy, still laughing, walked back over to look at the papers again. James stepped back, looking at the boy again.

"You see," the boy continued, "I never really had time to practice the levitating spell because I was sick for a while. I missed a couple classes and got behind. So I got to practice with the spell. Could you help me? …hello?"

The boy had turned to look at James, who stared hungrily at him.

"What's… wrong?" the boy said, scared from James's glare.

James suddenly threw his right arm into the air and the boy gasped, his hands dropping to his side. The boy's eyes grew white and shallow and the boy fell silent immediately.

James laughed in a voice quite unlike his own. This other voice was high pitched and hissed. "Yes, boy, you have picked the wrong person to ask homework help from..."

"But…" the boy said softly and slowly, as if talking from quite a distance away, "But I thought you were James Potter…"

"Yes…" the strange voice emanating from James's lips hissed, "If I had really been James, I would have helped you with your homework. James is a nice boy who would help those in need. But James is not here, nor has he been here for the past few months…"

"Then…" the boy asked from far away, "Who are you?"

"I am… and I shall always be… your worst nightmare come alive… more so than a Borggot… more so than a Dementor… more so than the 'T' you'll receive on your exam… because you'll never get the chance to sit your exam, little boy…"

The boy was shaking a little, fighting the thing that overcame him. "No… What are you?! What—?"

"SILENCE!!" James screamed and threw his arm in the air again. The boy stopped shaking and fell silent immediately, his mouth snapping shut.

Again, James laughed. "Now that you are under my Trance again, let's see if my power is sufficient enough to bite through my transformation…"

James laughed again. And as he laughed, his canine teeth spun and lengthened into teeth fit for a vampire. The boy watched mildly, unable to react in horror because of the Trance he was under. The vampire James stepped forward and grabbed the boy gently by the arms. James turned his head to his neck and bit, sinking his teeth into the boy's neck.

The boy convulsed slightly as another, new layer of Trance settled on him. But James soon let up on his bite, backing away. No blood came from the boy's neck; just a bright blue scar marked where James had bitten.

"Nothing more than a trickle…" James said in his high pitched voice, wiping his mouth, "My venom has not the strength yet to pull from the neck. I will just have to do this the old fashion way…"

And with that, James jumped high into the air, arcing backwards in a crazy acrobatic jump. He suddenly transformed, his body parts spinning about his bones, his robes flying off him, spinning into balls, and transforming, his skin darkening, his hair lengthening, and it all spinning and spinning, flying through the air and transforming.

The boy's eyes widened in horror and the rest of him watch mildly as James suddenly was no longer there. The figure back-flipped but did not land on the ground. It floated a foot from the ground and inches from the roof. It looked almost skeletal. Its head was not a lump, but a large body, its eyes of multiple colors piercing the boy's skin. Its lips were thin and ripped wide in a grimy smile. It had no nose but merely a single slit for a nostril. Its shoulders held a black shawl, which draped down past its ribcage, which was bare, exposed, a dark beating heart inside between two black lungs. Its arms were boney with skin just hanging off them. Its hands were skeletal and in one hand, James's wand twirled between fingers. Its massive hips, which draped another lacy shawl, were hung off a strong sturdy stick, a spine. Its legs, stick-like but bold and formidable, held two wide feet, which looked as if they could crush a house with a single step. From its head was draped a long black sheet of what looked vaguely like hair, which hung down past its feet.

The creature hung there in mid air, staring mischievously down at the boy who was caught in the Trance.

"Now boy…" it hissed in the same high pitched voice, "you will supply me with enough magical energy… to allow me to suck magic faster…"

The boy, still held by the Trance, shook slightly, his eyes wide but his body still.

"Come here, boy, and meet your fate…"

The creature waged one boney finger at him and he started forward, propelled by the Trance. He stopped at the beast's feet. The thing, laughing slowly, swooped a left hand down and grabbed the boy around the waist, its boney fingers enwrapping the entire circumference of his body. The thing raised the boy up, the boy fighting wildly against the Trance, but hanging limply physically. The beast opened wide its mouth and clamped down on the boy's stomach. The boy screamed on the inside, but only a gasped reached his mouth.

And the thing sucked, pulling the magic from the boy's veins, stealing his mind, his body, his personality, his memories, and his might for it to use, it to covet, it to feed from…

Then the creature released its bite. The boy lay limply in its hand, forevermore magicless. The thing slackened its grip on the boy and dropped him to the floor, the boy landing softly as the Trance that once enveloped him lifted physically. His wand tinkled to the floor beneath him.

The creature sighed in satisfaction. "Yes…" it breathed in its high pitched voice, "I can feel the magic flowing, adding to my own…"

Its head expanded slightly and it shouted out, "YES! I can feel it! I have passed the threshold!" It looked down at the feebly stirring boy at its feet. "Now I no longer have to hide in disguise as I suckle off of feeble children's powers! I can move out! Move on! Go into the world and feed off of real people and not these mere snacks!"

It laughed loudly and reached down and picked up the boy.

"no…" he said feebly as the creature again picked him up, this time by the scruff of the neck.

"Yes… You shall be the warning to those I pass in the halls. Those who stand up to me shall only help me, giving me more, pushing me ahead to the next threshold so I can Apparate to other places…"

"no…" the boy said again, falling unconscious.

The creature laughed and swung his stolen wand at the classroom door, which burst off its doorframe, no longer sealed. The monstrous creature laughed again as it squeezed into the hallway and the first screams of its reign of terror rang in the air.


	22. The Screaming Book

Chapter 22 – The Screaming Book

McGonagall flew out of the Pensive and landed softly on the rug in her office. Dumbledore looked up at her from his frame.

"Minerva!" he said, his eyes twinkling, "Glad to see you've returned! We thought we might have lost you in the Pensive."

McGonagall paid no mind as she moved swiftly over to her desk and stood behind it, thinking, her chair forgotten.

"Why, you've been in there a good many times now," Dumbledore continued cheerily, "And you have, what, one memory in which to study?"

"No…" McGonagall said, not turning from staring at the blank desktop, "I have several. One from the Potter's boy, another from one of the victims of the first attack, a couple of my own…"

"Goodness me," Dumbledore chuckled, "examining your own memories over this?"

"Yes," McGonagall said curtly, "but I think I finally found what it is… I just need to confirm my suspicions…."

And with that, she pulled her wand from her robes and gave it a wave. Suddenly, a heavy book appeared and landed on her desk. The gray and dusty book had some chain links left dangling from its spine.

"Goodness!" Dumbledore said, craning to peek over McGonagall's shoulder, "Is that a book from the restricted section of _our_ library?"

"Yes," McGonagall said, opening the book swiftly, "Somewhere in—"

"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!"

She was cut off in her sentence now as the book screamed loudly, causing several of the surrounding portraits to cover their ears and one in particular to hold up his ear trumpet to see what everyone was fussing about only to toss it three pictures over from the shock of the scream. McGonagall had simply jumped when the scream pierced the air. She grabbed her wand quickly and yelled, "OH SHUT UP!!" before silencing it with a charm.

The room was eerily quiet after that, the rain pounding away at the windows. But McGonagall did not waste any time in flipping through the pages, scanning the margins for one thing in particular.

"AHA!!" she yelled and pointed to the book, "The Dementra!" She leaned over and began to read sections of the entry, looking for something to prove her point. And she found it within seconds. "I knew it!" she said as she suddenly threw the book closed, crossed her desk, and moved over to the fireplace. Grabbing a fistful of Floo Powder, she tossed it into the empty fireplace, causing great green flames to spring up from the logs.

"Harry Potter," She called, "I request your immediate presence!"

Within a minute, Harry's figure appeared in the fireplace, spinning rapidly but slowing to a stop. He stepped out of the green flames which died instantly.

"You rang?" he said, wiping soot off himself. He looked as if he had not yet gotten a shower as his hair was messier that usual, if that was possible.

"Potter," McGonagall said, eyeing his quick dress work, "What have you been doing all day? It is nearly ten in the morning and you were still in bed?"

"I stayed up a little late last night, _mum_," Harry replied in an annoyed tone, "In case you don't remember, we were both at Draco's, looking at the centaur?"

"Right…" McGonagall said, then returned to her swift demeanor, "I have found it."

"Found what?" Harry replied tersely.

"What sapped your son's magic."

"Really?!" Harry said, all thought of the hour forgotten.

"Sit," McGonagall commanded as she went around the desk. Harry sat in the seat he had occupied several times throughout his school years. McGonagall chose to remain standing. "Look at this," she said, flipping the book open.

"AAAAAHHHHHH!!"

Harry clapped his ears as the scream from the book filled the room again. McGonagall snapped her wand up and yelled, "SHUT UP!!" before casting another silencing charm.

"You'll wake the school…" Harry said, his voice a whisper after the scream.

"If they haven't woken yet, it's about time they do so," McGonagall replied curtly as she thumbed her way back to the page. She suddenly found it and spun the book to Harry, saying "Look at this," pointing with her wand at an entry. Harry scooted his chair forward and read the entry from the book:

* * *

_**Dementra**__. Though the nature of this beast is not fully known, the Dementra is a terrible sight to see. It is recognized by its similar appearance with the Dementor (see __**Dementor**__, page 89), differentiated by its added feminine looks, such as long hair._

_It is born when a Dementor administers its Kiss on a young centaur during the full moon near the end of the summer months. As an adult centaur's soul is poisonous to the Dementor, a young centaur has not yet developed the full effects of the poison. If this happens, as a Dementor usually does not take centaur souls because of its poisonous qualities, the Dementor enters a limbo state, hanging between life and death. The effects of a full moon and the change of seasons combine to cause the Dementor to mutate into the Dementra. _

_The Dementra is a foul beast which administers a Kiss to liberate, not souls, but magic power from the blood of unsuspecting magical creatures. The Dementra begins as an almost lifeless beast that has no mind but to take the magic from the first creature it finds. When it has devoured its first victim's magic, it will become more powerful and have the ability to talk and think._

_A strange side effect also occurs when the Dementra consumes a creature's magic. Along with the creature's magical prowess, it also obtains some of the creature's DNA. It uses this DNA to transform into an exact copy of the creature, complete with its personality and memories. If the Dementra attacks several victims, the Dementra can become confused in the course of mimicking a creature. This usually leads to an early downfall, causing the Dementra to earn a reputation of being a "short lived threat". However, this has not always been the case (please refer to the entry on **Ian Arnotte** in **Magic's Untold History**)._

_When the Dementra finds a being to obtain magic from, it is elated at what has happened to it. It will continue to find creatures to obtain magic from, passing check-points of abilities along the way. It also should be noted that it does not matter how many creatures it steals magic from, but how much magic it steals. Because of this, it will seek out extraordinarily powerful creatures (wizards and witches are a favorite) to obtain magic from, as it allows faster progression to the checkpoint. After obtaining a certain amount of magic, it will be able to transform into something much more sinister, the Demon (see __**Magic Demon**__, page 369)._

* * *

Silence followed for a long time after Harry reached the end of the page. He looked up at McGonagall, who stared back, her eyes piercing him.

"A Dementra?" Harry asked quietly.

"Yes."

"But… I don't see the connection…"

"Oh, Mr. Potter, how exceedingly dim-witted are you?!"

Harry retreated a foot in his chair, surprised at McGonagall's edginess.

McGonagall took no mind to apologize and plowed on with her explanation. "You saw the centaur at the Malfoy's, didn't you?"

"It had its soul sucked out, yes…"

"Well the centaurs here on the school grounds are concerned because one of their foals had gone missing _near the end of August_."

"But it can't be the same—"

"Oh, it most certainly is, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said harshly, "That centaur exactly matched the descriptions that Firenze gave me down to the void that filled its eyes."

"But how did it get to—"

"Weren't you listening the glorious speech I gave next to that bloody fountain?!" McGonagall said, gesticulating wildly with her arms.

"I was!" Harry cried helplessly, not at all used to McGonagall losing her temperance, "But the Malfoy Manor is a long ways away…"

"Oh it is a dreadfully long ways away, but that does not mean that the body will not rest until it has found a soul!"

"Sorry…" Harry said, determined to end the discussion on the centaur.

McGonagall, red in the face, heaved a sigh before continuing more calmly, "Your sons found this beast in the woods at its bare minimum. It went for the closest victim, an unfortunate James Potter, because it had not the right mind to go for the more powerful and well versed boy, which at that time was James's _loyal_ friend, Roxas." She seemed to put much sarcastic emphasis on the word "loyal".

"Was he more powerful, or did he just know more spells?" Harry asked, fully aware of James's friend and his misgivings, as James had told Harry about him after the attack.

"The boy knew the theory behind several sixth-year-level spells, though I am sure he would not have had the wherewithal to cast such magic."

"But he was more powerful? More magical?"

McGonagall closed her eyes for a moment and Harry thought she was going to start screaming again. When she opened her eyes though, her voice was thoughtful, "I am not certain what the Dementra gauges one's magical status on, but I know it sets a lot of store beside magical skill. Roxas is a better student than James, and he seems to know how to do certain spells before he is taught how to properly, though this magic sense does not, it seems, leak into his common sense."

Harry smiled before asking, "So the Dementra takes magic from wizards to build up its own magical abilities. And with certain levels of magic comes certain magical tasks it can complete."

"Yes."

"And it can change into the people it sucked magic from so as to hide among people like him and take more magic."

"That is correct," McGonagall said and almost added points to Gryffindor, catching herself on the word "ten".

Harry cracked a grin at her, knowing what she had almost done. His smile faded before continuing, "So does that mean that the James that was here at school is actually the Dementra, looking for more kids to take magic from?!"

McGonagall bowed her head before saying, "I am afraid so. The Dementra has already succeeded in taking magic from two other powerful students in our school and supposedly a man from Hogsmade as well. I have been keeping an eye on him ever since, making sure he does not strike again…"

A very hurried knock came at the door suddenly and, before McGonagall could even look up at it, it burst open and Professor Spartz came bounding in, sputtering and stumbling, breathing very heavily.

"MCGONAGALL!!" he screamed, "IT'S HERE—! IT'S COME—! IT'S—! IT'S—!"

"Spit it out already!!" McGonagall screamed, beside herself, "What's come?!"

Spartz looked up at McGonagall's frightened eyes before whispering, "the girl dementor…". And with that, he tumbled to the floor, exhausted.


	23. The Dementra’s Reign

Chapter 23 – The Dementra's Reign

Harry's eyes boggled at the professor lying prostrate on the floor. McGonagall moved so swiftly that Harry might have thought she was flying. She ran over to Spartz and conjured a chair for him to sit upon. She levitated him into the chair as she was yelling to the portraits on the wall.

"Potter!!" She yelled suddenly.

Harry jumped, spinning to look at the Headmistress.

"Do you have your wand?!"

Harry, panicking, dug deep into his robes, afraid that he may not have brought his wand. To his great relief, he found it deep in the inside pocket.

"Come!" she yelled and led the way down the stairway into the screaming battleground below.

The corridor was crowded with screaming students running this way and that. There was a gaping hole in the wall where someone had blasted it away. Dust filled the air and bricks and stone littered ground.

"Can't we do this at the _end_ of the year, like we normally do?!" McGonagall screamed, "We have to do this right before _Christmas?!_"

Harry laughed for only a second before another crash was heard from the Atrium. Harry and McGonagall tore along the corridor now, dodging students to get to the Atrium. It wasn't long before it came into view and they knew what had happened.

Rain poured in through a gaping hole ripped right through Voldemort's face. The stain glass window was shattered, the pounding rain continually ripping more shards of glass away from the skylight, widening the hole and sending fragments plummeting to the ground floor. The rain poured, the dark sky above unrelenting upon the marble floor of the Atrium.

Harry and McGonagall stopped abruptly, leaning over the railing of the seventh floor balcony, looking down upon the mess below them. Intertwined with the glass shards and rising water on the ground floor, several bodies, student bodies, laid. And then through the storm and rain, a loud shout of immense glee rang out. A dark skeletal figure flew from a corridor on the ground floor and into the air, up and out the skylight, crashing through Harry's stain glass face and into the storm.

"Ow…" Harry said, watching his own face shatter and grabbing his scar in response.

"Potter?! Does your scar burn again?!" McGonagall called through the loud rain pounding the marble floor.

"No! But I felt that shatter…"

McGonagall rolled her eyes as she heard her name through the storm. Looking across Harry, she saw a teacher running at her.

"Minerva!" the teacher cried frightened, "the Dementor has Kissed several students! It has taken their souls and the soul of a teacher!"

"Do not worry!" McGonagall cried, "It is not a Dementor!"

"Then what the bloody hell was it?!"

"A Dementra!"

The teacher was confused as McGonagall turned away and lead Harry down the grand marble staircase, which was slippery from the rain. They reached the ground floor, where water splashed their ankles as it poured from the sky and roof surrounding the skylight. The fallen bodies in the center of the Atrium stirred feebily, the rain water pounding them. McGonagall called across to Harry, her wand out, and together they cast a Shield charm on them, protecting them from further harm.

Out of nowhere now, Harry heard a familiar cry.

"DAD!!"

Harry turned and saw Albus stumbling through the water towards him, pulling Rose behind him. The immense pounding of the waterfall next to him drowned out further screams as Albus approached. He flung himself into his father's arms, drenched from head to toe and shaking uncontrollably. Harry picked up his son as McGonagall grabbed Rose and they trudged over to behind the clock, which ticked quietly despite the scene surrounding it.

Behind the clock's massive base the sound of the pounding waterfall was quieted, despite ankle-deep water rushing around the clock's base and down the yellow touch-lit corridor behind the clock.

"Here, Harry!" McGonagall yelled over the still audible rush of water, and she set a shaking Rose next to Harry, who immediately grabbed Harry's hand, scared. "Hufflepuff house must be completely flooded out by now!" McGonagall yelled, looking down the corridor, "I'm seeing if anything more can be done!" And with that, she ran off down the corridor, sending several cat-like patronuses off in front of her.

"Daddy," Albus said, still shaking violently.

"Al," Harry replied hurriedly, "did the Dementra get you?! Are you alright?!"

"I'm… I'm fine," Albus said, shaking, slipping from Harry's grip, "It—It grabbed me an-an-and asked me i-i-i-if I kn-n-n-knew where th-th-the p-p-p-powerf-f-f-ul boy was…"

"What do you—?!"

"It read my m-m-mind, dad!" Albus said, clinging to his dad, trembling violently, "It—It—It wants Dylan!"

Harry's eyes went wide. "What?! But—" His thought broke off. Sailing back through memories, feeling strangely like he was in the pensive (which he attributed to the rushing water about his feet), he remembered long ago in some alternate universe Dylan casting an almost full fledged Patronus, which had died almost immensely but was immensely clear.

"Dylan…" Harry said to himself.

"The thing knows where we live!!" Albus cried.

Harry heard this and slipped a little, the rushing water pulling at his feet. Rose screamed next to him and gripped his arm tightly with both hands. Harry turned to Albus in his arms.

"Is Rose okay?!" he asked quickly.

Albus was shaking so much from the Dementra's touch and the cold of the water that his head shake was barely discernable from the rest of his body's shaking.

"She…" Albus tried, and tears came to his eyes quickly.

Harry looked back at Rose, whose eyes were wide with fear, looking down at the rushing water, unable to see whom she was holding on to.

"Albus!" Harry cried over the sound of water, "We need to get back home immediately! Rose can't see where she's going but you can! You need to walk! I need to carry her!"

Albus nodded, still shaking. He slipped from his father's grip and landed in the rushing stream around him, almost slipping into the pull of the water, but his father caught him before he fell. Harry bent now to look at Rose's face, who could not look back.

"Rose!" He called and she looked at him though still could not see him, "It's me, Uncle Harry! I'm gonna pick you up and bring you home with me! As soon as we leave Hogwarts, you'll be able to see everyone again, okay?! Hogwarts has a spell to make it so people without magic can't see the castle or its occupants!"

"But I can see a few people in the middle of the waterfall!" She called back, looking through the Atrium Clock at the center of the Atrium.

"And Dad!" Albus said, suddenly next to Harry and Rose, "James could see the Dementra while it was James!"

Harry thought, the said "Then maybe the spell strips magic from the view of muggles…"

At the word "Muggle", Rose began to cry, just as Harry thought she would.

"We're going to go home, okay?!" he cried to Rose and Rose nodded back, still crying. Harry picked Rose up into his arms and grabbed Albus's hand. He then waded backwards through the force of the water again into the main Atrium.

The sound of the crashing water was deafening. Harry waded through the force of the water shooting away from its waterfall, a column of rain pouring from the broken skylight. Albus looked up at the skylight's gaping hole, one that had grown much larger in the pounding rain. Harry had finally made it to the bottom of the marble staircase, the water to his knees here. He climbed slowly, careful not to fall, pulling Albus, who was soaked from the waist down again, along in his literal wake.

The climb up the stairs was made easier the further from the ground floor they got. By the time they reached the seventh floor, they were moving swiftly, though the echoing force of the water still reverberated in their ears. Harry moved along quickly towards the corridor he and McGonagall had come down. He turned the bend and soon came to the stone gargoyle; the crashing of water could be heard down the hall.

Harry froze. What was the password?

"Dad!" Albus called and Harry spun to him. "We can find a fireplace down this way, I think!"

Harry looked down the corridor further. Far along the wall, he spotted it, just as if it were yesterday. The tapestry where trolls were ludicrously trying to dance en Pointe.

Harry grabbed Albus's wrist and jolted down the hall. He stopped suddenly at the tapestry and turned around to face the blank wall opposite it. Will it work? Will the room work after what happened during the Battle of Hogwarts nineteen years ago?

Harry turned and walked, back and forth, Albus standing to the side, curiously watching his father pace while holding Rose in his arms.

_I need a place that will allow us to leave…_

After a third time across the spot, Harry turned and expected to see a door, but found nothing. His heart sank. Was the room ruined after all?

"I think someone's already in there," Albus said unexpectedly.

Harry spun to him. "What?"

"Well…" Albus started, the sound of water breaking off more glass reaching their ears, "I thought I heard Spartz yelling about the seventh floor safe room, and I remember visiting the Needy Room once before."

"The Needy Room?" Harry asked incredulously, then, "Wait, the safe room?"

Albus nodded, his robes flinging water off him as he did. Harry turned and again paced across the floor.

_I need to enter the safe room…_

After the third pace, he turned again and saw that a door had appeared. He grabbed Albus, ripped the door open, and entered inside. The moment he stepped into the room, the sounds of crashing water vanished and the sounds of voices hit him. The Room of Requirement had become a vast room bigger than the Entrance Hall but without the high ceiling. Hundreds of students were gathered here, talking about what had just happened. A few teachers were here as well. Harry glimpsed the top of Fitwick's hat bobbing towards him.

"Harry! It's good to see you!" Flitwick said in his squeaky voice.

"Good to see you too, Professor," Harry said, "Where's the exit, I need to get home immediately."

"Why there's a fireplace right over here…" And Harry followed the short old man across the room to a large grate where a fire was quietly crackling, keeping the room warm and providing wet students a place to dry off it Flitwick hadn't magically done so yet. Harry thanked the professor, grabbed the Floo Powder that set on the Mantle, and tossed it into the fire as he stepped in, dragging Rose and Albus with him.

* * *

Harry coughed and sputtered, holding tightly onto Albus's wrist as he spun past fireplaces across Britain. Albus seemed to be slipping, but Harry tightened his grip on his son's wet hand, not wanting to lose him in a wrong grate. Harry suddenly slowed as the kitchen of his own home came into view.

Harry stumbled out of the grate, coughing, knocking a stocking off the mantle. The sun shone brightly from outside, lighting up the kitchen and its festive decorations. Out the window, you could see the storm approaching, darkening the horizon. Ginny turned from the sink.

"It's about time you sho—What _happened_?!" She hustled forward quickly, pulling her wand from her pocket and scrutinizing Albus, Harry and Rose, who were all drenched. "What did you do?!" she yelled, "Miss a grate and fall into a lake?!"

From the other room now, James, Dylan, and Lily appeared. Lily and James snickered at their wet robes while Dylan looked mildly concerned. Harry continued to cough, bent double, unable to reply. Ginny, meanwhile, took to drying Albus's and Rose's school robes with a quick spell.

"Harry," she said, now slightly concerned, as she dried Harry's robes, "Why are the children here? Why is Albus shaking so badly? And why is Rose _crying_?!"

Harry coughed one last time before looking up at his wife, "Ginny," he said hoarsely, "Hogwarts has been attacked…"

"What?!" Ginny replied as the room fell silent.

"Hogwarts has been attacked by the Dementra, the thing that took James's magic…" Harry coughed again, looking at James's pale face, "It's got at Rose already and it almost had Al," he coughed one more time before turning to Dylan, "And it wants you."

Dylan lost color in his face. "Me?" he said, pointing at himself.

"Yes… It wants your exceptional magic skill," Harry said, gasping for breath, "and it knows where we live. It's on its way now and could show up at any—"

Boom.

Everyone froze. The low rumbling had come from outside the sliding glass door, from their porch. Harry and Ginny turned slowly, moving their eyes to the door. Standing outside it was Rose.

Rose, who stood crying next to Albus, gasped and clutched Albus's shoulders, pulling him towards her for comfort. The Rose outside was smiling, staring mysteriously inside at the Rose inside. Mirror-Rose approached the door and opened it. Standing in the door way, she asked in a sweet voice reminiscent of Umbrage, "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Could I borrow a cup of Magic please?"

"_DEPULSO_!!"

Both Harry and Ginny threw the spell at the same time, knocking Mirror-Rose backwards into the yard. She flew back and landed hard on her back, sliding back through the grass. But as she slid, she flipped up and transformed, spinning and flipping and twirling and convulsing into her true form, the Dementra.

"KIDS!!" Harry yelled behind him as he followed Ginny out into the yard, "GO HIDE YOURSELVES!! WE'LL TAKE CARE OF IT!!"

The five kids stood there, watching as the Potter parents ran out and immediately began to duel the beast, which used James's wand expertly to fend off the parents. Lily was out of the trance first.

"Com'on! We need to hide!!" she yelled, snapping everyone else out of it. She ran out into the hall, yelling "Up stairs!"

"No!" Dylan yelled, reaching out to hold Albus and Rose back, "We can't! That's the weakest part of the house! Any spells in a wrong direction and we're as good as gone!"

"Then where do you suggest?!" James yelled, wishing he had his suit engaged.

"Under the stairs!" Dylan said, pointing to the cupboard under the stairs. Albus went over to the door and opened it, looking inside the cramped but empty space.

"Bloody hell…" James said as he peered into it, "We won't all fit in there!"

"Then would you like to suggest something different before we all go to Bloody Hell?!" Dylan screamed.

James stuttered a moment, but then found himself outvoted as Lily, Albus and Dylan went into it. Suddenly, a red spell shot through the window in the kitchen, shattering it. The spell flew through the house and hit the roof right above James's head. James ducked and ran for the safety of the cupboard right behind Rose.

Allowing James to squeeze in, Dylan came to the front of the closet, wand at the ready.

"What are you doing?!" Albus cried from the back of the closet, "The Dementra's after _you_! And you're up front?!"

Several spells shot past the cupboard, Dylan pointing his wand at every one. "If that thing comes this way," Dylan said through gritted teeth, "I'll curse the living hell out of it."

James and Albus exchanged looks over Lily's head. "I didn't know hell lived inside it, did you Al?" James said slyly.

Dylan shot an amused glance at him before returning to staring at the hall, pointing his wand at anything that moved. The house shook suddenly and dust floated down from the underside of the stairs.

"Are you sure this is safe, Dylan?" Lily asked, raking the dust from her red hair.

"Almost certainly, unless you British people build your steps differently…"

"And what if we do?!" Albus cried as another spell flew through the hall and hit the front door, knocking it off its hinges.

Rose began crying suddenly. "What about my mum and dad?!"

"What about them?" James asked, shifting his legs because they started to tingle.

"They don't know about the Dementra!"

"The Dementra's not after them!!" Dylan cried as another spell flew past him, raising the hair on the back of his neck.

The house flashed suddenly, the rooms lighting up for a split second. For ten seconds, the children shuttered, thinking something bad happened to the house or to their parents, until a thunder crack could be heard in the distance.

"The rain's coming," Dylan said, peering out the front door at the mass of black that clouded the horizon.

"Hang on, Dylan…" James said, thinking, "Maybe we _should_ travel to the Weasley's house…"

"Why?" Dylan said, a green spell shooting past his ear and out the door.

"Because the Dementra won't have known where we've gone and we'll be save if the fight comes inside!"

"Why would the fight come inside?!" Dylan screamed, "Because of a little rain?! The fight isn't gonna—" he swore obscenely, "—come inside because of a little—" He swore again, "—rain!!"

The children sat stunned as the house shook again, dropping more dust on their heads.

"Blimey," James said quietly, "Was that an English word?"

Dylan realized what had come out of his mouth and he swore further, under his breath, as another spell soared past his head. He seemed to decide something and then yelled, "James! Can you get some brooms?!"

"I don't have my suit on!" James replied in a high pitched voice as the walls shook again. "I need to stand up to put it on too!!"

Dylan sighed as another spell shot past, making the hair on his neck stand up again. He then said, "What's the summoning spell?"

"_Accio_, why?"

"And where are the brooms?"

"In the closet in the kitchen," Lily replied grabbing Dylan's sleeve, which was all she could reach, "Why? You're not going to get them, are you?!"

A purple spell spiraled past the door in a helix shape as Dylan shook his head. "Are you nuts? I have a wand!" And with that he turned and raised his sequoia wand, yelling "_Accio_!!"

In the distance, the sound of a door slamming open reverberated through the house. Another spell flew past Dylan's outstretched hand as he held it up, concentrating. Suddenly, five broomsticks stopped in front of the doorway, floating, ready to accept their riders.

"Great!" James said as Albus craned to see, "Broomsticks! One for each of us!"

"No," Dylan said, "One for each magical person, extras for cannon fodder."

"What?!" James yelled, appalled. And right on cue, a red spell flew forward and hit a broomstick, causing it to fly forward into the air and out the front door onto the streets, bursting into flame as it flew.

"James, you're with me," Dylan said, not wasting any time as he pulled a broomstick behind the shield of the closet door, another broom getting blasted by a spell causing it to buck away, "Albus, you're with Rose, and Lily…"he turned to grab the another broom as it got shot away by another spell, "You're with me," he said, pulling the only surviving broom from the hall.

The children wiggled their way to the front of the closet as Dylan stood up and cast a Shield Charm (he'd seen Harry use it in practice) on the door to the Kitchen. He waited until he saw a spell bounce off it before he pulled the others out of the closet and he hurried with them and the two brooms to the front door.

Ducking around the door frame, he marshaled the children out of the house and into the front lawn. A few people were standing out on the street, watching as spells shot like fireworks into the air at a massive black thing that was floating above, twirling a stick in its boney hand.

James took the opportunity to activate his suit, the blue and white metal jumper covering him from head to toe.

"Okay, on your brooms!" Dylan commanded and they mounted their brooms as they had arranged beforehand, with Dylan, Lily, and space-suited James in the lead while Albus and Rose were behind. "Let's move!" And they hopped into the air and shot past the watching pedestrians, scaring the life out of them.

* * *

The broom sticks streaked ahead, flying a few feet from the blacktop, dodging pedestrians, cars, and stop lights. Dylan lead the way, James pointing him around curves and turns. The darkening sky was a menace on the horizon. Soon, the Weasely's three story cottage came into view, set one the edge of a vast farm field.

"There it is!" James called and Dylan raced ahead, Albus following quick on his broom. Within seconds they were at the front door, dismounting quickly. The door was adorned with a festive green wreath around a griffin knocker. Dylan knocked harshly on the door and within a minute, Hermione opened it.

"Rose?!" was the first thing out of her mouth as the children pushed their way in, leaving their brooms at the door.

As the children trooped in to the kitchen through the short entrance hallway, Ron called from the kitchen. "Who is it, Hermione?" His question was soon answered as he saw the children enter the room. He was up on a stepstool, decorating the walls with boughs of Holly, Hugo at his side, helping.

"Where's Harry and Ginny?" Hermione said, walking in with the two broomsticks.

The children gave her a significant look as James, his helmet disengaged, replied, "They're fighting."

"Fighting what?" Ron said, stepping off of the step stool, holly still in his grasp.

"Fighting the Dementra," Albus replied, his face blank.

"The… Dementra?" Hermione said, handing the house elf the broomsticks, quite forgetting to thank him, though he knew she meant to.

"What the bloody hell is a Dementra?" Ron asked as Hugo approached Rose, who was quietly crying.

James looked at Ron with a deadly serious look, "The thing that sucked my magic from me and has now sucked it from your daughter."

Both Hermione and Ron looked down at Rose with these words as she cried louder. They swooped down on her and both began comforting her, asking her if it were true.

"The Dementra," James continued, speaking, it seemed, only to Hugo now, "can change shape. It can turn into anyone it sucks magic from."

"Was it Rose?!" Hugo said, alarmed.

"Yes," Lily replied, looking stricken.

"And it's after me," Dylan said, sitting down in the chair the kind house elf offered him.

"You?" Ron said, looking up, "Why the hell would it be after you?"

"Because," Dylan said as lightning flashed outside, "I'm a very magical wizard."

Hermione looked up, "What do you mean? Wizards aren't more or less powerful, are they?"

"Oh, yes," James said, "And he can cast a Patronus."

"That would make you powerful…"

"So then," Ron asked worried, "Where's Harry?"

There was a sudden _CRACK_ from outside the front door that sounded nothing like lightning. The front door burst open and everyone looked down the hall to see Harry Potter walk in holding two wands, James's in his right hand, his own in his left.

Harry's kids coward backwards as Ron stood up.

"Harry! There you are, we were worried about you!"

But James had grabbed Ron's arm, holding him back. "Uncle Ron…" James said, his voice shaking, "th-th-that's not Harry…"

"What are you talking…" But Ron had seen it too.

Harry walked in, the lightning striking behind him, glinting in his multiple colored eyes.

"Hello, Ron," Harry said, smiling, "Nice weather we're having, isn't it?"


	24. The Dual Wand Duel

_From the Author: What a cliff hanger on that last chapter, but no one commented on it. I wonder if anyone is still reading this. I hate doing this, but I need insentive; someone give me a reason to post the last two chapters. If no one tells me that they're there, this'll be the last chapter posted... You can review anominously (however you spell that)_

* * *

Chapter 24 - The Dual Wand Duel

"H-H-H-Harry?!" Ron said, his voice cracking.

Harry Potter stood in the hallway, looking at them all with an uncharacteristic smile on his face. He twirled James's wand in his wand hand, then twirled his wand in his left hand. He was looking hungrily at Dylan, who sat back against the kitchen table, his wand drawn and pointing shakily at the visitor.

Then, just as lightning stuck again, it happened. As Ron dove for his wand, grabbing it from the island, Harry struck. His wand hand flew into the air and Ron shot backwards, flying through the kitchen window and out into the backyard, tumbling into the wheat fields. With his other wand, Harry flung Hugo against the kitchen wall and set a curse upon him which bound him to it in a spread-eagle fashion. James's wand twirled in Harry's hand as another spell shot forth, this time flying at Dylan. But Hermione had her wand out first and had set a Shield Charm on the children. The Body-Bind curse rebounded off the Shield Charm and hit the ceiling. Hermione was turning to strike, but Harry's left hand wand had already set a stunning spell at her, which hit her in the chest, throwing her to the floor. All of the above happened in a mere ten seconds.

Now Harry walked forward, wands at his side. The children cowered behind the Shield Charm; Hugo strugged against the bonds that held him fast to the wall.

"Poor Hermione," Harry gloated, looking down at the ginger haired figure on the floor, "She wasted the precious little time she had protecting you and not herself. And she didn't even realize that a mere Shield Charm cannot hold me back…"

And with that, Harry swiped his wand at the Shield. But nothing happened. Harry twitched for a moment, then slashed with both wands, trying to take out the charm. Still nothing.

"What is this?!" Harry yelled, the children suddenly very appreciative of Hermione's sacrifice. Harry twirled his wand again and again, but still nothing broke the charm. He fumed for a moment before he stopped suddenly and laughed. "Of course! What was I thinking! I'll just Apparate!" The children shuddered as Harry laughed and turned on a heel.

But again nothing happened. Instead of Apparating, all Harry did was a funky sort of ballerina spin.

"WHAT IS THIS?!" Harry screamed, "THE AIR IS SOLID!!" He did a second funky pirouette, but stayed where he was. "WHAT?! In the split second before I struck the Girl Cast A Non-Apparating SPELL?!"

Then it struck Rose, "No! You Idiot!" She screamed from behind the protective barriers of her mother's, "You're inside the house! No one can Apparate into or out of the house!"

Harry slapped his forehead comically, angry smoke seeming to shoot from his nostrils. But a lightning bolt struck and a thought came to his mind. He calmed suddenly and turned to Hermione. "That's okay… The caster of the spell is still on the outside of her protective barriers…" He turned and moved over to Hermione, "Soon, her sacrifice will be in vein…"

And with that, Harry crouched and jumped into the air, doing an elegant front tuck. But he did not land after one spin, nor after two. He kept spinning, rearranging, robes flying off him only to orbit around him, twisting into other clothes, his two wands flying out wards for a moment, circling him, and going back in to be grabbed by two boney hands as the figure came to a stop, not landing but floating in the air.

The Dementra, whose head was bigger and whose stick of a spine had expanded into something of a torso, floated above the ground. It had to hunch because of the low roof, but still it was suspended in mid air. The children shivered, huddled together, and Hugo had closed his eyes the moment he saw it. A thunder crack could be heard as the thing freed his left hand by moving both wands to its right. It then reached down with the boney hand and picked up the fallen figure of Hermione, its hand enwrapping her entire torso. It lifted her up, turning to the children so they could all see their savior lose her magic. And lightning lit up the room as the Dementra lifted the woman to its mouth, the children unable to help from behind their protective shield.

"HEY!! BONEY!!"

The Dementra blinked, freezing with the woman inches from his mouth. All eyes turned to the window, where Ronald Weasely jumped over the window sill and into the kitchen, the sky flashing angrily behind him. Ron fumed.

"DON'T TOUCH MY WIFE!!"

And with that, Ron threw a blinding Patronus at the beast, the silver translucent terrier flying out of his wand and grabbing the Dementra by the neck in its maw. The Dementra screamed, dropping the woman to the floor. The Dementra fell backwards to the ground as it struggled to get a wand in each hand. Ron was beside himself, lighting flashing in his eyes. With the children's cheers egging him on, he threw another Patronus at the beast, which grabbed the beast by the hand.

Ron then created a lasso of flame, which he twirled angrily above his head before throwing it at the monster. Ron pulled and flung the beast out the kitchen window, which shattered more as the tall figure flew through it, Ron's Patronuses dangling from the thing. Ron vaulted over the window sill as a huge thunder crack shook the house.

Now outside, Ron began flinging every curse and hex at the beast that he knew. The Dementra, meanwhile, had gotten its wands in either hand and blasted away the Patronuses. The Dementra spun and transformed into Ginny, who fell down at once and began to duel Ron with both wands, Ron dodging the thing's spells and throwing up protective charms when ever the chance came.

"DON'T THINK THAT DISGUISE WILL FOOL ME, GINNY!!" Ron yelled, "I KNOW WHO YOU REALLY ARE!!"

The children watched the duel intently through the shattered windows from behind their protective bubble of Shield Charm. Lighting streaked across the sky as spells streaked across the lawn. Dylan quickly broke away, intent on giving Ron the help he knew he needed.

Dylan looked down at the broken figure of Hermione on the kitchen floor, her wand lying feet away and her hair strewn across her face. He took out his wand and pointed it at her. Knowing it would not work, he waved it and said, "_Rennervate_." The spell rebounded off of the Shield Charm and fell to the floor, useless. Lightning flashed as he scraped through his mind for something that might work.

Then, somewhere from deep inside him, an instinct jumped to his throat and clawed its way into the air.

"Albus!" He called, not knowing what he was doing, "Come here!"

Albus turned from watching the duel and came over to Dylan. "Yeah?"

"Grab hold of my hand," he said, offering his hand.

Albus blinked, confused, but grabbed his outstretched hand anyway.

Dylan turned to stare at Hermione and, still not sure what the animal instinct was leading him to do, he held up his wand and twirled it in a circular motion.

"_Transpera Gromagus Rennervate_!!"

Albus gasped as a strange sensation shot down his arm, like his heart had run down to join Dylan's as they together cast a spell. The tip of Dylan's wand glowed, but no spell shot forth. Instead, a white shockwave appeared above Hermione's body and the Reviving spell shot out of it and hit her. Her eyes shot open as Albus felt his heart jump back down his arm and into his chest again.

Dylan breathed heavily, releasing his grip on Albus's hand, as he watched Hermione jump to her feet.

"Kids?!" She called and everyone turned to see her, "Kids?! Are you alright?!"

"Yeah!" Rose called, "We're fine, thanks to you!"

Lighting flashed through the house, blinding everyone for a spilt second. Hermione's eyes turned to Hugo, who was still pinned to the wall, his hands and feet bound with magic. "Hugo? Are you okay?!"

"Yeah, but could you get me down?! I need to go to the loo!"

"Not now," Hermione said, distracted as a stray spell came into the house and bounced off the shield charm surrounding all of the kids, "I have to help your father!"

"But mum!!" Hugo yelled as he watched Hermione jump over the window sill and join the fray. Rose had turned to look at Hugo, who was biting his lip. His arms and legs were spread, attached to the wall, and he was unable to physically hold himself.

But attention was soon drawn back to the battle outside. Dementra-Ginny had almost been bowled over by the flurry of spells that Hermione sent while entering battle. The only thing that stopped the spells was her left-hand wand, which seemed to move of its own accord. Hermione and Ron had pinned Ginny into a corner, one on either side of her. They were shooting spells left and right, trying to catch her off guard. Lighting streaked across the sky as it grew dark, the clouds pressing in, threatening rain. Though the surrounding fields grew dark, the grassy backyard was lit by the dozens of spells flying left, right, up, and down.

Ginny suddenly jumped, flying ridiculously high into the air, shooting spells left and right as she flipped, silhouetted against a lightning strike. Ginny then landed behind Ron and the thing that happened next was almost instantaneous.

Ron turned, shooting a stunner at Ginny. But Ginny was faster, rebounding the spell with her one hand and disarming Ron with the other. The first hand then blasted the airborne wand away from Ron's outstretched hand as the second hand cast a fiery lasso around Ron, pulling him spinning towards Ginny. Ginny caught Ron by the arms and, tossing a shield up around her and Ron, bit.

"NO!!"

The cry rang out from all around as Ginny's vampire teeth sank into the side of Ron's neck. Ron's eyes were white, wide, and shallow, his face aghast. He was facing his wife, who was crying out and sending spells and hexes at the same time, trying to puncture the powerful shield charm. But no spells penetrated the charm and Ron shuddered, the magic draining from his blood. His eyelids drooped and Ginny released him. The Shield Charm vanished suddenly as Ron fell forward onto the grass, unconscious and magically incapacitated.

Spells were flying at the Dementra as it spun out of sight, creating a loud _CRACK!_ Hermione spun about, searching for the Dementra through the wind and darkness, crying uncontrollably. She stumbled backwards and then ran over to her fallen husband, bending over him and trying to wake him. But James was screaming something through the thunder.

"HERMIONE!! LOOK OUT!!"

Hermione turned to see the Dementra appear in its true form behind her and bear down on her. She was fast on her wand and immediately shot six or seven stunners at it, tossing it backwards into the air and making it vanish with another _CRACK!_ This time it appeared immediately a few feet from the house, right next to the children.

It transformed and seconds later, Ron stood in its place.

"Honey," he said sweetly, though his multi-colored eyes said different, "Can't we talk about this? You like to talk… You like to talk a lot… and when we're in bed together…"

"DON'T YOU DARE YOU—" she was cut off by thunder as she swore insanely. The next thing the kids heard were her shouted incantations as she threw several nasty jinxes Mirror-Ron's way, the whole time gripping the real Ron's unconscious shoulder tightly. The Dementor-Ron disappeared with another _CRACK!_, letting the thrown spells travel past and destroy the Weasely's kitchen more.

Hermione breathed heavily, crying uncontrollably, looking about wildly, her wand aloft. There was a thunder crack from the wheat field and Hermione turned with a vengeance, flinging several curses through the stalks. A cry could be heard from the field and the grasses parted.

A boy with mousy hair stumbled out of the field, clutching his arm and whimpering weakly. The boy tumbled over into the grassy backyard and fell down, rolling onto his back, quite possibly dead.

A collective gasp came from around the boy as Hermione got up and stumbled over to him.

"Oh, no… what have I done?!" She could be heard as she leaned over the dead boy.

"Who is that?!" Dylan asked his fellow crowd members as lightning flashed again, "and what was he doing in the field?"

Albus was squinting, looking out at the boy. Hermione had picked the mousy-haired boy up and was carrying him over to the house. "wait a minute…" Albus said, catching attention around him, " that's a boy in my class… AUNT HERMIONE!! DROP HIM NOW!!"

Hermione looked up, startled, as the boy's eyes shot open and he yelled, "_CONFUNDO_!!" The spell shot from the wand the boy had clutched in his hand and it hit Hermione full force in the face, making her drop the boy, her eyes sinking out of focus.

The boy rolled backwards from the ground, his body parts spinning and churning as he did. Ron stood up now where the boy once was and came forward to catch Hermione affectionately.

"Hermione, are you alright?" he said as the children yelled warnings from the behind the protective charm.

Hermione turned her face upward to look at her husband. "You… you saved me?" she said, her eyes out of focus.

Ron nodded as he hugged her. She returned the hug and they kissed each other. Rose was crying wildly, calling to her mother, willing her to look around at her real husband unconscious on the ground.

The couple broke apart and hugged tightly. And as they hugged, Ron bit affectionately into Hermione's neck. A huge thunder crack resounded across the fields. Hermione's eyes went white and shallow as her magic slipped from her veins.

The children jumped back suddenly as the shield charm around them shuddered and flickered, failing as its caster's magic failed. The children screamed, knowing what was coming. Hermione, her consciousness dying, let one soft word escape her lips…

"james…"

And then she fell, landing unconscious on her back. The shield charm around the children flashed and died, leaving them exposed to the air.

Dementra-Ron turned, silhouetted against the flashes of lightning, smiling at the children who cowered behind brave Dylan and James, who both had their means of magic ready to fight. The Dementra-Ron laughed and then threw his right arm into the air. Like a shockwave, the Trance hit them and they all fell silent, staring at the fake Ron with mild interest. Ron waved them over and Dylan, James, Lily, Albus, and Rose walked forward against their will, lining up in front of him. Lighting flashed and thunder resounded across the fields, but the children didn't fidget.

"No!" a cry could be heard from the wall as Hugo struggled against his bonds. The children looked around at him, staring uninterested as a dark spot between his legs grew.

The Dementra laughed, its high pitched voice escaping from the fake Ron's lips, "You must have had a really strong urge to pee, boy, to break away from my almighty Trance to do so."

Hugo whimpered, trying mightily to get off the wall, but as Hugo glanced at the Dementra helplessly, it threw its arm up again and Hugo fell silent, enTranced.

Now the Dementra jumped into the air, spinning and transforming into its true form, its skeletal form, its most powerful form, floating in mid air. The thing laughed, mingling with the thunder, as it summoned forth its wands again, one flying from the ground near Hermione, the other flying from the wheat field where it left it. It caught both with its right hand and then swooped down and picked up an enTranced Dylan. It relished in finally getting its prize as the fiend clamped its mouth down on the American boy's stomach and sucked magic from his veins.

A full minute later, he dropped the unconscious muggle boy to the ground. The Dementra laughed loudly and harshly.

"YES!!" it screamed, its voice now suddenly deep instead of high pitched. It transformed, but not as before. Its arms lengthened and grew sturdy, its legs became large and landed on the ground, its chest grew massive and a bright red heart beat strongly from inside, its stick-like torso expanded to a great trunk, its head became large and a nose finally sprung forth, giving the slit nostril something spread across. Its eyes became large and red and its teeth grew sharp. The stub of a tail poked from its rear end and it stood tall, a little over nineteen feet.

"THAT was a FEAST!" the deep voice boomed, calling forth more thunder and lightning. It tossed the wands away to the ground. "I am nearly there! One more meal will push me to my full STRENGTH!!" It looked down upon the line of children left. "Now who shall I choose…" it looked along the line of passively watching children and rested its eyes on…

"Albus…" it hissed.

The small boy stepped forward, offering himself to the beast which blocked the menacing sky. The beast reached down and picked up the boy, whom he could easily fit into the palm of his hand. He lifted him up to his mouth and opened wide.

"OI!! YOU AREN'T DOING ANYTHING WITH HIM, YOU BLOODY BEAST!!"

The Dementra cringed, "Would you PLEASE QUIT interrupting me while I'm trying to EAT!! It is very anno…" The Dementra broke off as it spotted quite a sight.

Flying along the road on a simple eclectic scooter was Mr. Donavin, his face set hard and the tiny bit of hair he had flying full force backwards. He turned, skidding the tires around and hopping the curb to enter the Weasley's yard. The tires spun wildly on the grass, flinging grass everywhere, carrying the old man forward at an alarming speed. The great demon, along with all of the conscious children and even, it seemed, the sky, had frozen to watch the old man skid to a stop on the grass, which made the scooter roll over sideways, throwing the man off.

But the old man was ready for this; he rolled to a kneeling position as he swept a great shoulder-fire missile launcher off of his back and, pointing it at the great beast, pulled the trigger. A great missile lurched forth from the launcher, flying forward with a loud _BRROOOOMWOOOOSSSSH_ into the creature, knocking the demon for a loop.


	25. Non Magical Magic

_From the Author: Thanks for the feedback, everyone. It makes me feel a little better about these next couple parts because I thought I did horribly on pieces of those previous chapters. I am now proud to present to you the final two chapters of Harry's Kids and the Dementra's Kiss!!_

* * *

Chapter 25 - Non-Magical Magic

The Dementra screamed a most horrible scream, dropping Albus from its hand as it grabbed its red eyes, smoke and explosion getting into them. Albus landed safely as the Trance lifted, pillowing his fall as it spread off of him.

"Kids!" Mr. Donavin called.

Lily, Rose, James, and Albus looked around and saw him dismounting the missile launcher from his shoulder. They ran over to him, ducking their heads as rain started to come and the Dementra screamed in pain. Mr. Donavin loaded a second missile into the launcher as the children approached.

"Does anyone still have their magic?!" he asked and Lily and Albus raised their hands. "No one experienced, eh? Don't worry about your parents, they'll be fine. James, come here."

James stood next to the old man as he mounted the missile launcher on his shoulder again. The Dementra coughed and came to its senses slowly, shaking its large head to clear its eyes. Just as the Dementra spotted the old man again, it was hit by another missile fired from the launcher. It keeled backwards, falling to the ground, incapacitated by the explosion.

Mr. Donavin dismounted the launcher again and stuck another missile inside. He spoke to James through the slowly increasing rain.

"James, is your suit damaged at all?"

James stared out at the Dementra rolling on the ground in pain as he responded. "It hasn't touched me yet. It just cast that Trance over me…"

"Just put your helmet on and you'll be fine."

"My helmet?! How would that stop the Trance?"

"My dear boy, don't you realize that the monster relies on you looking at it when the Trance is cast?"

"It… It does?!"

"Yes and the visor on your suit will provide enough protection from its spell to keep you from becoming enTranced!"

"But how would you know that it needs…?"

"Don't worry about that now, boy!" Mr. Donavin said quickly, aiming at the foul beast as it got up from the ground. Mr. Donavin closed his eyes as the Dementra jumped to its feet and immediately cast the Trance on James, Albus, and Lily, whom were looking at it.

"Now…" the Dementra began, "Where was—"

But another missile had fired and hit the Dementra, knocking it backwards to the damp ground again and releasing the Trance that had set on the children.

James shook his head and immediately activated the helmet, which enclosed his head in three metal plates and a visor.

"Now, my boy," Mr. Donavin said as he dug into his pocket, keeping an eye on the writhing monster on the ground, "I have an upgrade I've been holding out on giving you. I knew you would need it soon, so I kept it on me. Here…" And the old man pulled out a card and inserted it into James's upgrade slot.

Suddenly, the words "Upgrading…" appeared on James's visor. James stepped back in surprise, realizing that the words were on his face when he moved his head and they did not move with the landscape. Suddenly the words disappeared and several computer readouts appeared which did move with the landscape.

"In this upgrade," Mr. Donavin said, reaching over to pull out the card, "are two new spells and the ability to analyze moving objects."

James turned his head to see his brother, sister, and cousin standing in the rain, staring at him. Computer readouts told him that Lily had a magic level of 1.2 to the norm while Albus had a magic level of 1.8 to the norm and Rose had a magic level of 0.0 to the norm. It also told him that their adrenaline levels were in an increased state and that their hearts were pumping faster than at rest.

"Woah…" James gasped as he turned back to Mr. Donavin to see that he had a magic level of 0.2 to the norm and his heart rate was rather normal while his adrenaline was high. "Mr. Donavin, you have some magic in you!"

"Do I? Well it must be exceedingly little…" and he fired another missile at the beast, which was just getting to its feet. "Now, listen carefully James," he said, reloading again and wiping rain and sweat from his brow, "This is my last missile. After I am done, you must fight the monster yourself."

"Me?" James said, pointing a metal clad hand at himself.

"Yes, you can do it! You are in no risk to lose your magic as it is not really magic. One of the spells that was added is called Broomstick. This allows your suit to hover using the same manner as using _Wingardium Leviosa_. Use it to dodge along the ground around the beast while throwing other spells at it. Just yell 'Broomstick' again to terminate the spell."

"But…"

"James!" Mr. Donavin yelled as he shot the final missile at the Dementra, which was just getting up, "You must! You are our only hope! I will keep these two magic ones safe from the Dementra so it does not reach full strength! James! It must be you!!"

Mr. Donavin got up and scooted backwards through the wet grass, leaving James behind but taking the remaining children with him.

"It must be me…" James said, watching as the beast got slowly to its feet. It was massive. The computer read out that the beast had a magic level of 199.8 to the norm, that its adrenaline was unreadable and that its heart rate was exceedingly high. "It must be me…" James said, his own adrenaline now shooting forth into his veins.

The Dementra shook its great head and looked about. "Where was I?" it said in its deep, menacing voice. It spotted James and then said, "Oh, yes… I was about to have your brother for lunch… where is he?"

"Oi!" James yelled through his helmet, "You aren't touching him at all!! You'll have to go through me first!!"

"HA!" The beast laughed, "Very amusing…" And he tossed his right arm into the air. A second later, the suit-clad James's arms were down at his side, standing rather erect; his face was unreadable behind his dark visor. "Now come here boy…"

James walked forward very erectly, stopping at the monster's feet.

The Dementra raised its foot up into the rain-filled air, saying, "I've just went through you, boy…"

It came down, the ground shaking violently. A sharp cry of "NO!!" could be heard from the ground and the Dementra looked down to see a very weak Dylan calling from the mud, crying.

"James!" Dylan called weakly, one arm in the air, the rain soaking him.

The Dementra laughed. "Your poor savior was NOTHING!" And with that, the Dementra lifted up his foot and came down upon the American boy.

"_DEPULSO_!!"

The monster screamed as it fell backward to the mud, clutching its foot. It looked over itself to see an unharmed and MagiSuit-clad James floating a foot off of the ground, his suit deactivating its invisibility feature. His arm was raised and he was standing in front of a very appreciative Dylan.

"WHAT?!" the Dementra yelled, "HE STILL LIVES?!"

James answered with, "_DEFODIO!!_"

The monster screamed as a blinding white orb of sharply spinning air flew at the monster and gouged a hole in its face. James took the moment to bend down and allow his wet muggle friend to get upon his back. James then skated along the ground towards the house, where Ron and Hermione were already waiting.

"YOU FOUL THING!!" James heard the Dementra cry.

Dylan looked back and yelled, "Look out!"

James swerved and a giant red spell crashed into the yard where he had been seconds ago. James twirled on air, Dylan holding tightly around his neck, and faced the now-standing colossal beast that was sending another red spell his way. James leaned sharply to the side and the suit swept him away from the spell, which gouged the ground and created a crater where James once floated.

"It's doing wandless magic!!" Dylan cried, holding onto James's neck for dear life, trying not to slip.

"I can do some too!" James cried through the helmet. He let go of Dylan and pointed his hand up at the monster's hair. "_INCENDIO_!!" A ball of flame formed on James's palm and shot forth through the cascading rain to where it collided with the monster's massive mane, which caught fire instantly. James dived away on the air again as the Dementra roared, turning this way and that to see what was burning.

Taking a round-about route around the monster, James flew towards the house, clutching a helpless Dylan to his back. They closed in on the house, flying along the ground. The Dementra screamed again as it found the source of the smoke.

"JAMES!!" Dylan yelled as his grip slipped on James's wet suit, "SLOW DOWN!!"

"I CAN'T!!" James called back as he reached around and grabbed Dylan's trousers to keep him on his back, "I'M NOT GONNA LET YOU—"

But just then Dylan slipped from James's back, James's hand slipping from his trousers. Dylan flew off and fell hard into the mud, sliding face first through it. James spun about and slid into the wall of the house. He looked up and saw the Dementra turn to see Dylan lying prostrate on the ground. Both fighters were at their magical guns.

"_AVADA KADAVRA_!!"

"_DEPULSO_!!"

The mechanically-made banishing charm raced the magically-made green jet for the same target. The two battlers watched as the orb, shot from closer, reached the boy first, rocketing him into the air away from James. The green jet hit the ground uselessly, causing the Dementra to rage and James to shoot forward on the rain and wind.

Dylan landed feet away from the Dementra and before it knew he was so close, James was in and picking the mud-stricken boy up, holding him by the waist. The Dementra screamed something to the air and a lighting bolt arched down from the sky and hit the ground where Dylan and James were seconds ago. James was back at the house within seconds, safe under the roof as another lightning bolt stuck nearby.

"_Broomstick_!" James yelled and his feet touched ground. He turned and shot a Confusing charm at the nineteen foot Dementra, which made the thing suddenly dizzy, and James came inside and set Dylan down on the floor.

As Hermione went to the bathroom for a towel, Dylan smiled through the mud plastered to his face and hair.

"Thanks, mate." Dylan said, giving a thumbs-up, "I owe you my life."

James's helmet came off, showing a dry and smiling James underneath. "No problem…" James said, breathless, "and I see you're becoming British yourself! 'Mate', huh?"

"Well," Dylan replied, wiping mud from his eyes, "you adopted 'no problem' well enough…"

James smiled widely and he commanded his helmet back on. James turned to head back outside when he saw Ron, sitting at the table, rather moody.

"Uncle Ron? Are you okay?"

Ron rubbed his neck. "It's not right, not having magic," he said grumpily, "I can't even clean my own wounds…"

"Oh, Ron," Hermione said as she bustled back in with a soggy towel, "You'll be fine. James will get us our magic back…"

"I will?" James said turning.

"…until which you'll just have to live without it for a while. Although, I would like to make my son something less of a decorative item…"

She turned to look at Hugo, who was still pinned to the wall, looking as if he wanted to change clothes since his trousers had, after all, been peed in. But just as Hugo was about to comment, a giant boney hand reached in through the broken windows and grabbed James's whole body, entrapping his arms to his side.

The hand pulled James out into the rain and lifted him up to come face to face with the ugly Dementra.

"Oh, that's right," James said in an attempt to stay calm, "I was fighting you, wasn't I?"

"YES!!" The Dementra roared in rage, "NOW DIE!!"

"You first! _STUPEFY_!!"

James had extracted his arm and pointed it at the Dementra. The Dementra laughed, though, as the red orb crashed on the shield charm it had placed on itself.

"You FOOL!!" the thing laughed, "I figured you like to aim for my head, so I cast a Shield on it!" The thing laughed loudly.

"You really need to learn to keep your plans to yourself," James said as he pointed his arm downward and yelled, "_Stupefy_!!"

The Dementra's eyes went wide and it dropped James, doubling over. James caught himself with _Broomstick_ and yelled, "Oh, and take a breath mint!" before shooting another fire charm at its hair. The thing screeched as it the fire caught again, despite the rain.

"James!"

James jumped as he heard Mr. Donavin's voice from all around him.

"Mr. Donavin?!" He called, looking about.

"It's okay, James," Mr. Donavin replied in his ear, "I'm not beside you. I'm calling through the helmet."

"Like a telephone!?" James said, returning his view to the writhing, but recovering, monster.

"Yes," Mr. Donavin replied with a half-amused tone, "like a telephone. Now, keep fighting but listen carefully."

James slid above the muddy ground now, gliding through the air around the monster to attack it from behind.

"The other spell I added to the suit is the killing curse," Mr. Donavin continued.

"Well why didn't you tell me earlier?!" James yelled back, "_Av_—"

"NO!!" Mr. Donavin yelled, stopping James, "NO, my dear boy, don't yet. This move is a last resort move. You must make sure that the Dementra is almost dead and completely defenseless, FIRST!!"

James hesitated in the rain, his arm raised. The Dementra took the moment to stand up and throw its own killing curse at James. James dove out of the way, sliding along the ground and around the monster again. He raised his arm to the beast again and yelled, "_DIFFINDO_!!"

A red jet shot forth from the palm of James's hand and cut through the rain to hit the protective bubble around the Dementra's head. The spell cut a tiny slit in the shield, but harmed it no further. By now the Dementra had turned again.

"QUIT RUNNING AWAY!" the Dementra boomed as he shot a second killing curse at James. James again dodged around the slow moving demon and shot another slicing spell at its head. This continued onwards, the Dementra turning and James dodging around to cut at the shield on its head.

After the seventh time, the shield broke. The Dementra screamed.

"HOW DARE YOU?!"

"NOW, JAMES, NOW!!" James heard Mr. Donavin call.

The Dementra dove to the ground where James stood. James shot into the air on the Broomstick, shooting another fire on the thing's hair. The thing screamed as James pointed both arms and legs at the screaming beast and yelled at full force, "_AVADA KEDAVRA!!_"

The beast screamed.

Lightning flashed.

A bright warning appeared across James's face.

The suit shuddered.

The rain slowed.

And suddenly, shooting from every extremity, from every spell launcher, from every forward facing plate on the suit, a bright white beam of light shot forth, flying at the helpless Dementra. The beam turned green, flying at the ground with a force so powerful it blew the grasses away, clouds away, the trees, the wheat, the rain away. The suit fired every known missile, every known spell, every programmed response to any and all commands that it had ever ever known. The beam of light turned red and expanded, slamming the Dementra hard into the ground and flying high into the air, creating something like a mushroom cloud into the air. The clouds parted, but lighting stuck, striking the figure of James high in the air, whose suit redirected it at ten times the force at the Dementra, charring the thing's dead skin. The spell continued on and on, slamming more and more spells at the thing, shooting lightning at the beast, throwing every single thing it could think of at the body lying on the ground.

* * *

The clouds had parted, the sun had returned, and James floated down in the clutches of the suit. The Dementra lay before him, its eyes boggling at James, incapacitated.

It bled, not blood, but light, flies of light, of magic. These pyreflies floated from the beast slowly, deprecating its magic power. James landed in front of it. His visor was once again blank, but he knew the beast was slowly leaking its magic.

"You are so powerful…" the Dementra said, its voice once again high pitched. It was shrinking, shriveling up, losing power, memories, intelligence, magic…

"I am…" James said from behind his helmet, "but you are not."

"You could have joined me!" it said desperately, "we could have ruled the world together, you in your power suit and me in my Demon form." It shuddered as several pyreflies escaped its mouth. When it spoke again, its voice was less, "We could have ruled over the human race and had all the power we wanted—"

"You wanted," James snapped, "I don't want power at all. I just want to be normal. I just want my family back..."

SNAP!!

James shuddered as he saw a defiant crack split across his visor. He watched, shocked, as pieces of metal fell away from him. The suit fell apart, piece by piece. Each metal plate, each metal arm, each screw and bolt and pivot joint failing, falling to the ground, defeated. James watched, tears coming to his eyes, as his faithful suit fell off him, the elastic straps snapping off, and each piece coming to rest on the ground.

Ron and Hermione came from the house. Dylan, his face clean and robes dirty, stepped through the wet grass. Albus, Rose, and Lily crept forward from the front yard. Mr. Donavin, with a released Hugo in his arms, stepped gingerly through the mud. Even Harry and Ginny, who had arrived in time to see the killing curse work, came forward now. All of them watched in excitement as the Dementra shriveled and shrunk but watched in horror as James's suit failed and fell.

The Dementra watched James, a gleeful expression coming to its face. It held up a boney hand and summoned forth the wands from the ground. Both Harry's and James's wands flew to it, but it missed Harry's wand as it fell to the ground, short of its caller. The move made several more pyreflies fly out of it, floating into the air. Some of the pyreflies floated to the surrounding people. Pyreflies floated over to Ron and Hermione, over to Harry and Ginny, over to Rose, and went into their chests, went inside them, and filled them with warmth, with magic. A great number floated over to Dylan and filled him with his lost magic, with his lost powers. Some of the sprites floated high into the air, returning to owners far away. And some floated from the dying Dementra and into James, going into his chest and filling him with a strange new sensation, but a familiar old one at the same time.

The Dementra shriveled on the ground, its intelligence fading, it returning to looking quite like a girl Dementor again, its breath rattling again, its head but a lump. In its hand was clutched James's wand, its last attempt to do magic becoming futile. James bent over and plucked his wand out of its hand.

He laughed at it. "No more magic for you, _muggle_. _DEPULSO_!!"

And the Dementra was blasted away, screaming through its unintelligible rattling breath, flipping backward through the air and slamming hard into a tree. A cracking sound issued from either the figure or the tree, and it vanished into a great puff of gray smoke.

And from the smoke, several fairies flew, flying at great speeds, streaking from the tree, ghostly figures of people, men, women, and children, surrounding them. And one particularly bright one looked strangely like an ecstatic boy centaur.


	26. The Solemn Squib

Chapter 26 – The Solemn Squib

"Ow…" James said as he collapsed into the mud.

"James!" Harry called, running forward to kneel in the mud and embrace his son. "Alright there?"

"Just… tired."

Harry smiled, knowing the feeling on a much larger scale.

James looked about. Everyone was happy: Rose was glad she could cast magic again; Dylan was talking excitedly with Ginny, he even saw Ron and Hermione kiss romantically before Hermione hurried off to fix the damage to the house while Ron rushed over to heal the landscape with some happy wand waving. But James's eyes soon turned towards Mr. Donavin, who was crying.

"Mr. Donavin?" James said, getting up with the help of his dad to go over to the old man. "Mr. Donavin, is everything alright?"

Mr. Donavin sniffled loudly. "M-M-M-My suit…" He then cried out and ran over to the pile of metal pieces on the ground, picking up each one and rubbing his wet cheeks against it. James and Harry exchanged amused but scared looks as they heard him say quietly to each piece he nuzzled, "I'll make you better… I'll make a MagiSuit 2… And I'll make it better…"

And just as Harry was getting up to see his wife, Mr. Donavin looked up. "Harry, my boy!" he said, mid-nuzzle with a helmet plate, "I must know… did I ever pay you back for you generosity?"

Harry looked confused for a moment but then smiled and said, "Yes, Mr. Donavin, you've paid me back in full."

Mr. Donavin looked pleased as he returned to nuzzling his work.

"Alright, Everyone! Wands in the air!"

Everyone turned to see several ministry workers walking towards them, their wands aloft. At the head of the pack, was Dean Thomas.

"Dean?!" Harry said, incredulous, "what are you—?!"

"Wand in the air, Harry!"

Harry grabbed his wand from the ground and put his hands in the air. He looked around at the children, who also had their hands in the air, but the youngest didn't have wands.

Dean stopped a few feet from Mr. Donavin, and his staff of like-uniformed ministry workers walked around them, surrounding the scene.

"Harry?" Harry heard Ron's voice call, "What's going on here? What's the Ministry of Magic doing here?"

"Ron," Dean commanded, "please put your wand in the air and enter our circle here. We don't want a confrontation."

"Dean!" Ginny yelled, and Dean turned slightly pink, "What is the meaning of this?!"

"Well, I'm the head of the Improper Use of Magic Office and the Ministry has detected improper use of magic! One or more wizards have been using magic in front of one or more muggles here."

"Oh, _now_ you come!" Harry said, his wand still to the sky, "I've been doing magic in front of Mr. Donavin for ages now and you didn't come then!"

"Harry!" Dean said, confused, "Mr. Donavin is not a muggle… he's a registered Squib."

"He's what?!" A cry rang out from through the ring.

Mr. Donavin blushed, still clutching a piece of his suit.

"So that's why you've known about the magical world?!" Ginny said, "You _grew up_ in it?!"

"Well," Mr. Donavin started, "I didn't want you to know…"

Harry and Ginny exchanged glances.

"So then you admit to doing magic in front of muggles then?" Dean said, his face hard.

"Well I have an explanation for it," Harry said.

"Do you?" Dean said, determined to do his job well, "let's hear it then."

"Well, you see—"

_CRACK!_

"Harry!"

Harry turned to see Professor McGonagall running forward from the house. She push into the circle between Dean and another ministry worker and ran right up to Harry.

"Harry! Did you defeat the Dementra?! I just read on the next page that - yes, the entry continued on the next page - that when the Dementra is defeated, all the magic it stole returns to its previous owners! My students are regaining their magic!! Did you defeat the Dementra?!" McGonagall paused for a moment, looking at a blushing Harry. "Why are you holding your hands in the air?"

She turned and saw Dean pointing a wand at Harry.

"DEAN!!" she snapped, "What is the meaning of this?!"

"I was just about to ask you that myself!" Dean snapped back.

McGonagall looked incredulously at the ring of ministry workers. "I was here to congratulate Harry on defeating the Dementra!!"

"What the bloody hell is a Dementra?!" Dean asked, annoyed.

"And what about me?!" James said, his wand in the air still, "I defeated the thing!"

"What do you mean?! You're still under age!" McGonagall snapped.

"He didn't do a thing of magic!" Ginny replied proudly.

"How?! What do you mean?! And why do you have your wands up?! Put them down!"

Everyone put their hands down.

"What Are You Doing?!" Dean yelled, "Keep Your Wands In The Air!!"

Everyone put their hands up again.

"Put them down!!" McGonagall commanded.

"Keep Them Up!!" Dean counter-commanded.

"Put Them Down!!"

"KEEP THEM UP!!"

"Put them—"

_CRACK!_

"Harry!"

"Oh boy…" Harry said throwing his hands in the air in exasperation, everyone watching them go up then down again. But no one was expecting a centaur to suddenly burst into the circle. The colt bounded forward and plowed Harry over, hugging him overenthusiastically and toppling him to the ground.

"The colt?!" Harry said as the happy centaur pulled Harry to his feet again. The children, gleeful at seeing a young centaur, came forward to greet it and pet it. Harry turned and saw Draco push his way through the line of ministry workers.

"Harry! Emulus here got his soul back!"

"Emulus?" Harry said, looking down at the boy centaur, who looked back with gleaming blue eyes.

"That's my name," the young centaur said.

"Wotcher," Draco said joyfully to a furious looking Dean as he hurriedly approached Harry, "It was brilliant, really! I saw a fairy come across our hills while I was down checking on Emulus. The fairy raced across the fields and Emulus got up and saw as the fairy raced towards him. And they came together and it was bright and Emulus greeted me well enough and thanked me for taking care of his body and he wanted to see you!"

"Really?" Harry said, eyes wide, as the centaur hugged him.

"Yes! And so—"

"ALRIGHT! ENOUGH!!" Dean screamed and everyone fell silent, looking at him. He glanced around, waiting for someone else to appear and interrupt him. When he thought the coast was clear, he cleared his throat and turned to Harry. "_Do_ you have an explanation for yourself, or _not_?" Dean said, hands on hips, an angry crease between his eyes.

Harry looked around at all the people surrounding him: his family, his friends, and his fellow ministry workers… and a centaur. Harry turned back to Dean and said apologetically, "Well, you see… it's a long story."

Dean turned, conjured a chair, and sat down in it, crossing his arms. "I have a lot of time."

Harry smiled and, with a glance at a smiling Mr. Donavin, said, "Well then, Dean… it all started… with a house fire…"

_End Story_

* * *

_From the Author: That's the end of the story, what do you think? I'm thinking of a sequel (even if no one wants it, I wanna write it for my sister). If you didn't notice, I made a great character with Dylan here (the next Dumbledore, according to my sister), but I didn't do anything with him. I introduced Dual Wand Dueling and a lot of other strings were left dangling. These could be tied up in the sequel, which I have planned out in general. Weather I write it or not depends on my homework load at college. If I do write it, I'll post a chapter 27 here telling you guys about it. The name might be called Harry's Kids and the Diamond of Precedence, but I'm not sure yet. See you around!_

_Sincerely,  
Tim P. - AKA. __Tustin2121_


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